Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke Season 1 (Part II)
by Nerdherder51
Summary: A ONCE UPON A TIME / DISNEY FAIRIES crossover story. Vidia has escaped the curse, but has no memory of her life in Storybrooke. She is recruited by Henry into Operation Cobra to identify her friends who are living as humans in town. Armed with this information, can Vidia and Henry convince Emma Swan that she is the savior who will free Storybrooke? Rated T. Milarion, T&T, Vidia.
1. Chapter 1

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **A Disney Fairies / Once Upon A Time Crossover  
** **Season 1, Episode 13, Chapter 1**

 _The following occurs before during and after the events of the thirteenth episode from Season 1 titled "What Happened to Frederick."_

 _Note: I've rewritten much of this chapter. The story involving Fawn will be pushed back a few episodes in favor of a story involving Tina and her past as Tinker Bell._

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Over dinner at the Nolan house, Kathryn revealed to David that she had applied for law school and was accepted. However, the university was in Boston. She had hoped that they would move out of Storybrooke so they could get a fresh start. David was impressed by this bold move. He wasn't even aware she had such aspirations, but the prospect of moving out of Storybrooke clearly bothered him. He decided to take a walk to think about it.

David went for his evening walk. He was clandestinely meeting with Mary Margaret. David explained Kathryn's desire to move away, David had no desire to leave.

"Have you told her about us?" she asked.

"No, and I don't think I should," he replied.

Mary Margaret was worried that if they couldn't be truthful with others they could not be truthful to themselves. She asked him to make a choice and he chose Mary Margaret.

"Then it's time to tell Kathryn," she said, encouraging him.

 **~ O ~**

"I thought we weren't going to do this anymore?" Claire asked.

He replied, "So did I." He kissed her lightly on the neck. Claire and Hartley had had another date this evening. It was supposed to end with a nightcap at Granny's. It didn't. They were laying on the couch, wrapped in a blanket and completely bare underneath. They had made love again.

"We can't keep doing this," she told him.

"That's what you said last time," Hartley reminded her. "And the time before that."

She glared at him playfully. He kissed her on the lips. Hartley pulled her close as if initiating another round of lovemaking, but she put a stop to it immediately. "No, Hartley, we can't. I have work tomorrow and my girls need me."

"Of course," he agreed.

Claire dressed wondering why she wasn't able to stop herself. She didn't want to stop dating Hartley, but if her impulses couldn't be controlled she might have to do just that.

"Can I see you tomorrow?" he asked. "Perhaps dinner and a walk in the park."

She almost said no, realizing that they might end up like this again. But she had been without companionship for so long. "Okay. But you take me straight home afterwards."

 **~ O ~**

The next morning Emma was walking into Granny's Diner when she ran into the tall stranger as he was leaving. He wanted to take her out for a drink, as he had promised earlier. She refused because she didn't know anything about him, like his name.

"It's August W. Booth," he relented.

"Really, with the 'W?'"

"It stands for Wayne."

Emma agreed to meet him after work.

"Now that wasn't so hard," he said before roaring off on his bike.

Inside the diner Swan met up with Mary Margaret. Emma was more than aware that her roommate was still seeing David even after saying she would give him up. "How did you know?" Mary Margaret asked.

Emma told her that Mary Margaret wasn't particularly adept at hiding her tracks. She had left plenty of obvious clues lying around the house.

"Why didn't you say anything?" Ms. Blanchard asked.

"I'm not your mother," Emma replied.

Mary Margaret took a sip of her coffee. "According to Henry, I'm yours." She informed Emma that David had made his choice and was telling Kathryn everything.

 **~ O ~**

That same morning David regretfully told Kathryn that he would not be going with her to Boston. He claimed he wasn't able to make any kind of connection with her. David wanted her to find someone she could make a connection with so she could start fresh the right way.

Kathryn was devastated by this confession.

David left out the part where he was leaving Kathryn for another woman. She was still in the dark about the relationship he had been developing with Mary Margaret.

* * *

 **~ O ~**

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

Prince James had been captured, but not by whom he thought. The prince was running from his adoptive father, King George. James had decided not to marry Princess Abigail a woman he did not love. Snow White, the woman he had fallen for, had come to castle and explicitly told him she did not love him in return. It broke his heart. Rather than wed a woman he had not feelings for, he fled hoping to seek out Snow White and perhaps change her mind.

When the blanket was thrown over him James fully expected to face the wrath of King George. Instead he stood in front of Abigail. She was protecting him. Princess Abigail did not want to marry James, either. As it turned out her heart also belonged to another.

But there was a problem.

Abigail brought James to a gazebo in the woods which was built around a golden statue of a man drawing his blade into a defensive posture. James was impressed, the intricate detail was incredible and the statue looked more lifelike than any he had ever seen.

There was a reason for this. What James was admiring wasn't a statue, but a real man. This was Prince Frederick, the man Abigail loved. A while back there was an ambush on King Midas' caravan. Frederick leapt in front of Abigail's father to protect him. Unfortunately, King Midas accidentally touched Frederick and turned him into this gold statue. Abigail wanted nothing more than to undo her father's curse.

"Have you tried true loves kiss?" James suggested.

"Till my lips bled," Abigail responded disheartened.

"The gold got in the way," he surmised.

There was, however, a solution. The magical waters from Lake Nostos could undo the spell. James was confused, if the water could undo the curse why hadn't she used it.

The lake was defended by a terrible creature. The creature drowned every person who tried to secure the water from the lake. James wanted to help and asked to be taken this lake. Abigail could not ask him to risk his life. Prince James had his own reasons. Snow White had come to his castle and declared that she no longer loved him. If James succeeded then Abigail would have the man she loved and her misery would end. If James died he would be put out of his own misery.

* * *

 **~ O ~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

The newspaper blared the news. Mr. Gold was in jail and headed for court. Everyone knew the pawn broker was a swindler who belonged behind bars, but his arrest was still something of a surprise to everyone in Storybrooke. He was far too meticulous to ever get caught.

The charges, though, were for kidnapping and assault. Mr. Gold never lost control. He always manipulated every situation so that he was in the superior position. Everyone else in town just danced to his tune. Somehow someone managed to get him to resort to violence.

"Well it's about time," Claire said, reading the headlines and story with a bit of satisfaction. Part of her hoped he would get a long sentence. If he couldn't run his pawn shop and it closed down it could mean Claire might be able to get out from under the crushing debt she owed him. Of course, it was always possible that the loans would be sold to another party, but that would take time. For once, Claire felt a bit of relief.

"Okay, girls, let's go." Claire rinsed the breakfast dishes in the sink. She, Tina and Valerie piled into the work truck. Claire noticed right away that Tina didn't look quite right. "Honey, are you okay?" Claire asked Tina.

"I'm fine," she replied. "Y'know, school and all."

Tina was lying. She was feeling sick again. Right after being dropped off at Storybrooke High School she ran into the closest girl's bathroom and threw up. She was getting very worried. Her symptoms were getting worse, not better and new indications were emerging. "What's wrong with me," she asked herself quietly.

She rinsed herself off at the sink. Tina did not notice that someone else was in the bathroom, as well. Another girl who overheard her being sick and her comment afterwards. "I can tell you what's wrong," the girl said. "But you aren't going to like it."

* * *

 **~ O ~**

THE ENGLISH COUNTRYSIDE (The late eighteenth century)

"I found it!" a sparrow man yelled. In his hands was a blue glowing moonstone.

The fairies of Pixie Hollow had been in an all-out panic. Their one and only moonstone had been shattered in an accident two years earlier. The Autumn Revelry was scheduled for later this season. Without a moonstone no blue pixie dust would be created and the Pixie Dust Tree couldn't be refreshed. It would eventually wither and die, leaving the fairies of Pixie Hollow without their much needed dust. Without pixie dust no one would be able to fly and no one would be able to perform their unique talents to deliver the seasons to the mainland.

Worst of all, without Pixie Dust the entire fairy race would eventually die out. Whenever a baby's first laugh arrived it was doused in yellow dust which caused it to turn into a fairy. If no dust could be produced those laughs couldn't be turned into fairies. Through a matter of time and attrition fairies would die with no new ones to replace them until they were all gone.

Now that a replacement stone had been found, that bleak and horrible future had been averted. When word made its way back to the Pixie Dust Tree that a new moonstone had been found Fairy Mary nearly fainted with joy. The sparrow man who found it was hailed as a hero, but he was nowhere to be found. With the euphoria of finding the all-important stone no one bothered to find out who it was.

The sparrow man wasn't from Pixie Hollow. He had disappeared into the tall grass. Once he was far enough away the sparrow man waved his hand. He was briefly engulfed in a pillar of purple smoke and emerged in his true form: Rumpelstiltskin.

He joined his traveling companion, a tall man named Jefferson who wore a long coat and over sized top hat. Jefferson was a realm jumper. His hat could absorb the ambient magic of any world and open portals. These portals not only opened to other realms, but any point in time in that other realm.

"Is it done?" Jefferson asked.

"Yes," Rumpelstiltskin replied. "We can go now."

"Fine, I'm eager to get back home."

"Oh, we're not going home," The Dark One informed him. "At least not yet."

"Well where are we going?"

"Not where. When."

Jefferson looked confused at first. "You mean, we aren't leaving this place?"

"Oh no," Rumpelstiltskin answered with a wicked smile. "I want you to take me into the future. Just a few decades will do. There is a house where I need to be. A house with a baby. Now then, off we go."

* * *

 **Sorry about the confusion with the restart of this story. It occurred to me that I needed to put this story about Tinker Bell here or it wouldn't fit in later. Don't worry, I'll get to Fawn's backstory when Ruby gets her day in the limelight.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **A Disney Fairies / Once Upon A Time Crossover**  
 **Season 1, Episode 13, Chapter 2**

 _Note: I've extensively rewritten the previous chapter replacing the Fawn story with one involving Tina / Tinker Bell. Please go back and reread chapter 1 before reading chapter 2. Sorry about the change and thank you for your patience._

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

"What's this?" Henry asked. His adoptive mother Regina presented him with a gift. He opened the box and found a hand held video game, _Space Paranoids_.

"I'm sorry you lost your book," she told him, "but now you can save the princesses and be the hero."

He looked it over, somewhat disappointed with it. "What's wrong?" she asked him. "Don't you like it?"

"It's Emma," he told her. Henry disliked this arrangement Regina had concocted to keep Emma Swan away from him. Henry wanted to see Emma again. Whenever he wanted. Regina didn't like the idea of Emma being around Henry, but being away from his birth mother clearly had a negative effect on him. She tried to talk him out of it, but Henry refused to accept her reasoning.

A knock at the door ended their conversation. "Go home and do your homework," Regina told Henry. "We'll talk about this later."

The person at the door was Kathryn Nolan. She was clearly upset.

For so very long she had been worried about her husband. He had disappeared only to be found in a coma at the hospital. David had been classified as a John Doe until he woke up. She had finally gotten him back and now he was leaving her. From the joy of reunion to the heartbreak of separation in only a few months. It was more than she could handle. For support she came here to see her friend the mayor.

"He what?"

"David left me," Kathryn said, nearly bawling her eyes out.

"Why that little home wrecker," Mayor Mills seethed.

Kathryn was totally confused by her statement.

"You didn't know?" Regina asked. Mayor Mills showed Kathryn a box of photos. They were pictures of David with Mary Margaret. Sydney had been taking the photographs for months. Regina claimed that he was looking for a scandal to put in the paper, but she wouldn't let him.

Kathryn was now more upset than ever wondering why Regina had never said anything. The mayor responded by telling her that she wanted Kathryn and David to get back together. She hoped they could work things out and that this infatuation David had with Mary Margaret would simply blow over.

Kathryn, though, was angry with Regina for not telling her before.

"I was just being a friend," Regina told her.

"If you wanted to be my friend you would have said something," Kathryn replied before leaving. When she arrived she felt heartbroken. Now she felt betrayed, both by David and Regina.

 **~ O ~**

David called up Mary Margaret at school. Classes had let out but an art show, featuring works completed by the students was in full swing. Parents and their children lined the halls admiring the colorful creations. David informed Mary Margaret that he had told Kathryn everything. The school teacher was relieved to know that David had admitted the truth to his wife, even if it was heartbreaking for Kathryn to hear.

Kathryn, however, did not hear it from David, but from the mayor and she was steaming mad. So mad in fact that the Mrs. Nolan stormed into the school during the art show looking for the teacher. Mrs. Nolan almost knocked over the gym teacher right before slapping Mary Margaret for the deception.

The two women had their confrontation in the hallway where everyone could see and hear. At first Mary Margaret was confused until she realized that David had not told Kathryn. She had found out from someone else. David had lied to both of them. Kathryn was not terribly sympathetic towards Mary Margaret after learning this, since both were carrying on this deception behind her back.

"You two deserve each other," Kathryn told Mary Margaret, whom she saw as being equally responsible for maintaining the lie.

* * *

 **~ O ~**

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

It was night by the time Prince James and Princess Abigail arrived at the path to Lake Nostos. At the start of the path was a fountain with what appeared to be several rusted pieces of armor, weapons and jewelry lying in a basin.

"What's this?" James asked as he picked up a helmet from the fountain.

Abigail explained that this was an altar to the creature which lived in the lake. Every person who tried to acquire the water from lake had left behind something as an offering to the creature asking for good fortune.

James took his sword and a water skin. "I go alone from here," he told Princess Abigail.

"I'm going with you," Abigail demanded.

"No, the only life I want in my hands is my own," James replied.

He started down to the lake when she asked, "What about an offering?"

"It didn't do them any good," he said, referring to the many who never returned from the lake.

When James arrived at the shore of Lake Nostos he cast aside his cloak and uncorked the water skin. When he tried to fill the skin the surface of the lake began to bubble and glow. It was real. The creature which Abigail had warned him about.

James drew his sword. "Show yourself," he demanded. Moments later the creature accommodated him. From under the water's surface rose the figure of a person. It was a beautiful woman dressed in a glittering, beaded dress. This was the creature that guarded the lake, a siren which seduced men to their doom.

* * *

 **~ O ~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

August W. Booth roared up to Granny's on his bike to pick up Sheriff Emma Swan. "Hop on," he told her.

"Hop on? How about I drive?"

"How about you stop trying to control everything and take a leap of faith?" he replied. "I know a good watering hole."

"If you don't, I will," Granny said, who had been listening into the conversation as she was cleaning the outdoor tables in front of her diner.

Emma finally acquiesced, donning the spare helmet just as August drove off. He brought her to an area in the woods just beyond the city. Here was a towering tree with sprawling branches. At the base of the tree was an old fashioned water well.

"A watering hole?" she said, realizing just how literal he was being. August walked her to the well carrying two metal cups. He explained the myth behind the watering hole. This well drew water from an underground lake which purportedly possessed magic. Whoever drank from it would recover something lost.

"Magic? You actually believe that?"

"I'm a writer," he told her. "I have to keep an open mind."

Emma was suspicious of him. He knew quite a bit about Storybrooke for being a relative newcomer. As it turned out, he knew the story of the well because he had read the plaque. Sure enough there was a plaque which described the story of the well almost word for word.

August then explained that water flowed through all the lands and was revered by civilizations since the beginning of time. If anything had magical properties it was water.

Emma simply thought that those old superstitions came from ancient societies trying to explain away all the properties that water possessed. Properties which had been illuminated by science in recent decades.

Whether she believed it or not August could state with certainty one thing, "Its good water." He handed her one cup filled with the water from the well. They both drank. He was right, it was good water.

 **~ O ~**

Storybrooke, being a rather small community, meant that gossip traveled fast. Very fast. By the next morning word of the infidelity involving David and Mary Margaret had spread like wildfire. Mary Margaret was walking down the street on this cold and cloudy morning. She began to notice that the people on the street were staring at her. Some were whispering as soon as they spied the schoolteacher.

Two girls approaching her on the sidewalk turned their eyes away from her. They refused to even say hello. She recognized them from when they were in her class a few years ago. She was perplexed by their reaction. When Mary Margaret accidentally bumped into Granny, the normally pleasant older woman had nothing but venom to spew in her direction.

"You should be ashamed of yourself," Granny said with disgust.

That is when Mary Margaret understood. As an elementary schoolteacher Ms. Blanchard had always been held in high regard, but this scandal destroyed her entire cache of goodwill and credibility. She was now the most reviled person in town.

Ms. Blanchard came to her old Jeep Wagoneer where she found someone had spray painted the word "TRAMP" on the windows in big, bold, red letters. David was trying to wash them off.

Near tears, she asked him, "Who did this?" He didn't know. She asked him why he didn't tell Kathryn. Why he lied to her and let someone else reveal the truth about their relationship.

"I thought maybe if she didn't know about us no one would get hurt," he told her.

Mary Margaret was repulsed by this poor excuse. "Well now everyone is hurt, David." She was seething with contempt for his actions and how they affected everyone, including Kathryn and herself. The whole city had turned on her now. If David couldn't be honest about them then Ms. Blanchard declared that what they had wasn't true love, but something terrible and destructive.

Right then and there she ended their relationship, breaking up with him.

* * *

 **~ O ~**

LONDON, ENGLAND (The Late 1800's)

A baby, just a few months old, laughed for the first time. The laugh was magical, as all first ones are. This one, like all the others that had preceded it, drifted out towards Never Land where it would become a new fairy. This laugh, though, was special. It split in two. This laugh would become siblings.

"There," Rumpelstiltskin said gleefully, pointing it out to his travelling companion. "We're just in time."

When Rumpel saw that it split his smile drooped into a concerned frown. "Oh, now that was unexpected. But never mind, I can fix that."

Each laugh caught hold of a dandelion seed floating in the wind. Rumpelstiltskin knew which one he needed, so he pushed the other seedling aside where it got caught in a tree. "There now, no intrusions by a meddling sister."

"Wait, you mean you just tore apart two sisters?" Jefferson asked.

"I need this one to be alone or else what must come to pass won't."

"Well, what about the other one?" Jefferson asked.

"If it doesn't find its way eventually it will die."

Jefferson didn't like the sound of that. He was unwilling to let the laugh die before it could be born as a fairy. To that end he removed his long coat and waved it about creating a gust of air that dislodged the dandelion seedling and allowed it to continue towards its destination. Of course, Rumpelstiltskin wasn't too happy.

"Now that wasn't very nice," The Dark One commented with a scowl. "I need mine to be alone."

"I won't let you kill the other one," Jefferson stated openly.

Rumpelstiltskin wasn't fond of the fairies of his realm. In fact he hated them and considered them to be most despicable creatures for what they had done to him. The fairies of this realm were different and while he bore them no ill will he had no love for them, either. Whether one of them lived or died was immaterial to him. Rumpel, though, recognized that he needed Jefferson and his hat to complete his mission, so he took an alternative which would satisfy his own needs and Jefferson's intrusive sense of morality.

"Very well, come with me," he said. Both he and Jefferson vanished in puff of purple smoke. Instantly they were transported to Never Land Island. They were perched on a hillside that overlooked Pixie Hollow. When the two laughs arrived, carried by the wind, Rumpelstiltskin directed one of them towards the warmer seasons where a purple clad fairy received it and brought it to a huge maple tree with a glowing trunk.

The other seed, which eventually followed, was directed towards the cold season until a cold weather fairy pushed it to a landing where a root spewed forth a yellow glowing dust.

"Happy?" The Dark One asked with a bit of an irritated tone.

"Delighted," Jefferson answered drolly. "Where do we go now?"

"Oh, we're already here," Rumpelstiltskin said. "We'll just jump ahead a couple of years. Now hurry or we'll be late for the theater."

* * *

 **~ O ~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Tina was shaken by what she was told. The other girl in the bathroom was Carla, a student with few friends largely as a result of her brutal honesty. Carla had noticed that Tina had been showing up to school sick more often lately and had offered a devastating suggestion.

"Morning sickness? It can't be," Tina said. "It has to be something else. Please, the only way for it to be morning sickness was if I was pregnant. That can't happen. I've never done it with anyone."

Then it dawned on her. "Oh no. I did. With Clarence." Tina began feeling sick again, but for a whole different reason. She had to find out if Carla was right. To do that she would need a pregnancy test from The Darkstar Pharmacy.

"I can't do that. Mr. Clark will tell my mother." Tina began to consider other options. Buy it from the internet? No. If it was delivered to the house her mother or sister might see it. Plus the credit card was in her mom's name, she would get the bill and find out anyway.

"What if I ask Valerie?" That wouldn't work. Val would most certainly tell their mother. She couldn't ask a teacher, they would be duty bound to inform Claire. Another student was out of the question. They would just spread it around school. It might be discounted as rumor by most but that rumor would find its way to the parents who would in turn call Tina's home.

She could ask a stranger, but she had always been taught not to talk to strangers. Besides, Tina reasoned, the only adults who would be willing to help her in this instance were the seedy, untrustworthy ones.

Tina felt backed into a corner. No matter what, every avenue seemed to eventually come back to her mother. Once Claire found out she would want to know why Tina thought she might be pregnant and Tina would have no choice but to reveal that she had sex with Clarence.

Ever since Tina became a teenager and took an interest in boys Claire repeatedly warned her against going around having sex because of the trouble it could cause. Claire would completely lose it if she discovered Tina's secret.

"I am in so much trouble," the girl pouted.

Then she remembered there was one person she might be able to get help from: Penny.

* * *

 **Thank you for your patience. I hope that this new storyline meets with your approval.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **A Disney Fairies / Once Upon A Time Crossover**  
 **Season 1, Episode 13, Chapter 3**

* * *

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

Prince James stared at the attractive female figure that stood before him. This was the monster responsible for the deaths of so many. A siren. A creature of magic that took the form of a seductress who wooed men to their deaths with promises of love and passion.

"What's your name," the deceitful creature asked. "Would you like to know mine? Because I can be anyone you want me to be."

Prince James was not fooled. This was how she killed. The siren took the form of whatever dream woman the man wanted with the offer of a satisfying love life. When the men gave in to her wiles she would drag them to their deaths, the victims fully entranced.

She approached him, but he held her at the point of his broadsword. "I know what you are and I will not fall prey to your deceptions," he warned her, refusing to give in to her empty promises.

The siren poured water from the lake over herself and in an instant she took the appearance of Snow White.

"Like me now, Charming?" she asked him.

This struck him to his core. Snow White had declared she did not love him anymore. It left him with a hole in his heart. And now here was this apparition willing to give him the love that had been denied him.

"Everything you want but cannot have I can give you," she teased him. "All you have to do is kiss me."

James tried to resist, to remember this was all an illusion but the possibilities were so tantalizing that he gave in, allowed himself to be drawn into the lake and kissed the woman. But something about it did not feel right and he pushed her back. The siren was not so easily dissuaded. She continued to woo and coerce him. She teased and kissed him offering to end his heartbreak if only he would accept her as the woman he loved so deeply. As James' resistance to the enchantress slipped, the grip on his sword failed him and it dropped into the shallows.

To try and seal the enchantment she kissed him again. James was tempted to have this woman. To win the love of Snow White. He very nearly succumbed, then he remembered who she really was.

"This isn't real love," he told the malicious siren. "I've known real love and this isn't it. I don't want an illusion, I want reality. You've failed."

"Congratulations, Prince Charming," she told him with a wicked smile. "You're the first."

The siren lunged knocking the prince into the water. If she couldn't entrance him to his death she would do so with brute force. The siren dragged him down to the depths of the lake where he would drown. With no weapon he shook her off and tried to swim back to the surface for air. The siren's magic was powerful and she commanded the plants of the lake to reach up and take hold of him, preventing James from getting the precious air he needed to survive.

All seemed lost. The siren approached him, ready to continue to seduce him until death. Charming, though, noticed that among the dead bodies that littered the lakebed was a dagger. He slowly let his arm go limp as if giving into his fate. She took him in her arms, but before she could take the life from him he struck. The dagger plunged deep into her chest, her blood turning the water around her into a wispy red cloud.

He cut the plant stem which was holding down. He looked back at the image of his love, Snow White. It changed back to the siren and then turned into a floating corpse. James sprang from the waters, gasping for breath. When he got to the shore he filled the water skin and started on his way back to where Princess Abigail waited anxiously for him.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

That same afternoon Emma was clearing the leaves from her police cruiser. She was still trying to process the odd visit to the well with August W. Booth. Why he chose that place and why he seemed to have a need to relate that strange myth about the well and about water in general was still a mystery to her. August claimed to be a writer who had come to town seeking inspiration. Yet she couldn't shake the feeling that he wasn't telling her something.

Emma's foot knocked into something, breaking her out of her thoughts. Next to the curb, hidden under a pile of leaves was some kind of box. She picked it up out of the water flowing to a storm drain and discovered it was the strong box that Henry kept his book in. She opened it. Miraculously the book was still inside and it was in great condition. She decided to return it to her son whom she knew would be anxious to get it back.

 **~O~**

From the opposite side of the street, hidden from view was August. He was carefully watching to make sure she found the book. His first task was done. Now he only had to wait. Mr. Booth was hoping that Emma would put two and two together. She drank from a well which he told her would restore something lost and then she found something that had been missing.

He took Emma Swan for a diehard skeptic. It was obvious she never took strangers at their word. She required quantifiable evidence before she would be willing to believe in anything or trust anyone. "Faith" was simply not part of her vocabulary.

His mission in Storybrooke then, was to get Emma to make that leap of faith. The well was the first step towards that goal. Returning the book was the second.

 **~O~**

Kathryn Nolan visited Regina at the mayor's office. She came to apologize. Yesterday she had been blindsided by both David's confession and Regina's revelation. Overwhelmed, she lost control and lashed out at her friend.

Mrs. Nolan then told Regina that she came to realize that she and David were never really in love. To prove her point Kathryn showed Regina one of the photos from yesterday.

"See how he looks at her?" she said, referring to a picture of David and Mary Margaret staring into each other's eyes. "He's never looked at me the same way," Kathryn painfully admitted, not even before the accident that took him away from her for so long.

Regina advised her that relationships take work and shouldn't be abandoned because of a rough patch. Kathryn responded by asking if Regina had ever been in love. The mayor answered that yes, she had been once.

"You're lucky. What they have is real and it's true," she said while staring at the photograph. "I've just been fooling myself all this time and I never realized it until I saw the real thing. This is what I want for me and I'm going to find it."

Kathryn had decided to stick to her plan and leave for Boston, but alone. She confessed to writing a letter to David explaining everything. She even encouraged David to be with Mary Margaret in that letter.

This startled Regina. Her entire plan to keep Prince Charming and Snow White from their happy ending was coming apart at the seams. Of course, she couldn't mention this to anyone else. No one would know what she was talking about. Well, Mr. Gold would know, but he wouldn't care. In fact, Rumpelstiltskin might even try to get involved just to undermine Regina if he ever found out.

Or maybe he already did.

Mrs. Nolan gave her friend a hug, tearfully saying she would miss her. Kathryn felt as if some irrational fear had been keeping her from leaving Storybrooke in the past. Today, though, she felt emboldened to push forward and start a new life and seek her happiness. Her true happiness.

Regina decided to roll with the punches, at least superficially. "Maybe this is what you need," she told Kathryn. "I hope you find just what you're looking for."

As soon as Mrs. Nolan left the office Regina began to think of how she was going to stop David and Mary Margaret from getting back together again. Then she remembered something that Kathryn had told her in passing. She had left David a letter. That letter was her first priority.

* * *

 **~O~**

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND (The Late Victorian Era)

Here it was half buried in the sand, a shiny pocket compass. Terence had been helping Tinker Bell build the Fall Scepter for the Autumn Revelry, but one of her tools snapped. The blonde dust keeper came here to the cove where lost things washed up on the shores of Never Land Island. Inside of the pocket compass was a needle with a sharp, pointed tip. This was just what she needed to finish the scepter.

He felt so relieved to find exactly what he needed exactly when he needed it that the thought never dawned on him that perhaps someone else had put this here. That someone was Rumpelstiltskin who waited for the right moment before materializing it half buried in the sand. Terence just chalked it up to good fortune.

Later, back at Tink's house that sense of good fortune turned decidedly bad when the pocket compass fell over and broke the scepter. Tinker Bell had set the entire incident in motion, but she refused to take responsibility. Instead she erupted into one of her tirades which ultimately drove the boy out of her house in a huff.

"You brought this thing here, Terence. You broke the scepter" she scolded, shuffling blame onto the innocent boy. "This is all your fault!"

In her arrogance fueled rage Tinker Bell kicked the compass and with a flick of the lock the lid popped open and smashed the precious moonstone to bits. Unfortunately, as she learned later that day, it was the only moonstone known to exist. If Tinker Bell couldn't find a solution quickly all of Pixie Hollow would suffer.

That solution arrived in the form of a story that Lyria, the most talented storyteller talent in Pixie Hollow, vividly recreated for her audience at the Fairy Tale Theater that evening. Mixing story, song and images created with pixie dust Lyria told the story of an amazing fairy artifact from Pixie Hollow known as the Enchanted Mirror of Incanta. It had the power to grant any three wishes the heart desired. Two of those wishes had been used, but a third remained.

That mirror, unfortunately, was no longer in the possession of the fairies. Ages ago a band of pirates captured something most precious: a fairy. From their captive they learned of the location of Pixie Hollow and took both the treasury and with it the fabled mirror. The pirate ship eventually ran aground on an island somewhere north of Never Land where it remained to this day. However, no one knew the exact location of this island. As for the stranded pirate ship and mirror, the only clues to their location were a stone arch and a troll bridge, which Tink mistook for "toll bridge" thanks to the music briefly drowning out the actress.

If this mirror existed then it was the answer to Tinker Bell's problems. Fairy Mary, Tink's immediate supervisor, confirmed that the stories told in Fairy Tale Theater were all very true. Upon learning of this Tink snuck out in the middle of the act and began to form a plan of action. She had had to find that magic mirror, lost or not. The little tinker fairy had tried every other possible means of restoring the moonstone and each attempt failed miserably. She was desperate. This was now her only way of making things right.

 **~O~**

At the end of the performance the audience rose with thunderous applause. The show was a triumph. A massive success. Lyria, a slender fairy with blonde hair and dressed in white retreated to her dressing room. Here, slumped and asleep in the dressing room chair was another slender fairy with blonde hair and dressed in white.

This slumbering fairy was Lyria. The real Lyria. The person who so expertly put on the show was Rumpelstiltskin. He had taken her form and put the storytelling talent to sleep just so that he could tell the legend of the mirror. It was necessary for Tinker Bell to hear that legend because he knew she would try to find it.

The Dark One woke the real Lyria, but erased her memory of him or being asleep. Instead all she remembered was delivering a bravura performance. One of her very best.

"That was some show you put on," Jefferson remarked. He wasn't always privy to most of Rumpel's activities when they travelled through the realms, but The Dark One wanted him nearby this time. It was almost as if he wanted an audience. Or a chronicler. "One question, how did you know where to find that mirror?"

"How?" Rumpel asked with an impish giggle. "Because I put it there, a very long time ago."

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

"Penny, I need your help," Tina explained to her friend. Tina had gone to Penny's house allegedly to study and do homework. In fact she was here to ask her friend for a favor. "You have to promise not to tell anyone."

"Yeah, sure. What is it?" Penny asked. The younger girl figured that Tina's insistence on doing this quietly was related to something utterly benign, like a family birthday. She was completely shocked when Tina explained the truth of the situation.

"Morning sickness?" Penny gasped. "But, if you have morning sickness that means you would be pregnant. And if you're pregnant then that means… THAT MEANS YOU HAD SEX?!"

Tina was not proud to admit this fact. Had she been confronted by Penny about this a few weeks earlier that sentiment would have been very different. Tina thought she had embarked on a path towards maturity and womanhood. She had seen sexual relations as a means to emancipation from perennially being the child of the house. That with it would come the respect and dignity to which Tina thought she was entitled. Now she was faced with the potential burdens of a child. All she wanted was to no longer be thought of as the baby of the house but when the idea was first proposed that she might be having a baby of her own Tina's first thought was that she was just a child herself.

Tina sighed and had to make the admission. "Yes."

Penny's eyes went wide with wonder. "Who…?"

"Clarence."

"Clarence?!" Penny replied incredulously. "Clarence?! The mailman?! Really?!"

Tina nodded.

"Well he is kind of cute! I guess the mailman really does ring twice," she joked. Tina didn't laugh. Penny didn't notice just how uncomfortable she was making her friend and continued. "Okay, now be honest with me… on a scale of one to five, how was he?"

"WHAT!?"

Penny slapped her forehead, then began babbling excitedly. "Oh well if he's that cute he must have been good. Really, really good. I mean totally mind blowing good. So was there like a lot of moaning? Did you call out his name over and over again? Not someone else's, I hope. That's just rude. OH! OH! Maybe you two were all screaming like banshees and then you dug your fingernails into his back. Did you ask for more, afterwards? You did ask for more, right? Or maybe he fell asleep? Ooh that would be bad if he fell asleep. Maybe you fell asleep. Maybe you both feel asleep? Wait, he didn't ask you to do anything nasty, did he? Because if he did I would just throw him his pants and toss him to the sidewalk. 'That's not something I do, buster. Take that nasty mind of yours somewhere else,' I would tell him…"

"Huh!? Wait. Wait. Wait. Why do you need to know so badly?" Tina asked, confused. Here she was possibly pregnant and Penny was acting irrationally excited about the subject.

"I've always wondered what it would be like," Penny remarked. "Some of my internet friends have said it's amazing, while a few say it's not all that it's cracked up to be. But I don't know if any of them have actually done it or not. They could be lying. But you, you've actually experienced the real thing. You know what it's like. You can tell me everything. So, was it great? Did you see fireworks? Did the earth shake? Was it fun?"

"What is wrong with you?!" Tina screeched. "I'm the one in distress, remember?"

"Right. Right. Sorry. Sometimes I can get so excited about something new," Penny explained enthusiastically. "You should see me around computers. When Intel announced the 22 nanometer Ivy Bridge Core i-series processors to replace the 32 nanometer Sandy Bridge Core i-series processors I got so freaked you had to peel me off the ceiling."

"Oka-ay. That's more than I needed to know," Tina muttered under her breath.

Penny then began analyzing the situation. "So, morning sickness. Um… are you sure it's morning sickness? I mean, do you even know if you're pregnant?"

"No. I don't," Tina replied. "That's why I need your help. I can't buy a pregnancy test without it coming back to my mother. Can you get it for me? Through the internet or something?"

"I know someone who can get it for you right now and your mom will be none the wiser," Penny replied. "C'mon, let's go. I'll call her one the way and we can meet her across the street from the pharmacy."

The slim girl grabbed her jacket and backpack on the way out the door. Then she began jabbering excitedly again as if hopped up on coffee and NoDoz at the same time. "I can't believe it. You actually had sex. That is so! Freaking! Awesome! So was it just straight up sex or did you try any weird or funky positions? What about edible underwear? Oh, did you use some of that gel they advertise on television to improve the sensation? What about porn? Did you watch any porn? Some say that helps."

"PHARMACY!" Tina yelled.

"Oh right. Sorry. What am I thinking? But it was great, wasn't it? Tell me it was great!" Penny pleaded.

"Penny, you aren't thinking about doing it yourself, are you?"

"No, of course, not," she replied, sounding offended. "But I'm a sponge for knowledge and this definitive bit of information has eluded me for over two years."

Tina sighed. "Yeah, it was great. Can we go now?"

"I KNEW IT!" Penny shrieked. "Take that FussyPants1138. And you said it was boring. HA!"

Tina asked as she slipped on her jacket, "Who is FussyPants1138? One of your internet pals?"

"Yeah. Sort of. She's always telling me sex is empty and pointless," Penny replied. "But she's also a Goth-Nihilist, so everything is empty and pointless to her."

"Interesting… Can we go to the pharmacy now?"

"Yes! To the pharmacy!" Penny declared. "So does Clarence have any distinguishing marks, like a mole or a birthmark?"

"Ugh."

* * *

 **Note: The Sandy Bridge and Ivy Bridge processors are types of micro-architecture that were used in the making of Core i3, Core i5 and Core i7 processors found in PC's and laptops. The Ivy Bridge based CPU's were replaced by Haswell based CPU's and the Haswell based CPU's have since been replaced by the Broadwell based CPU. Broadwell is the current micro-architecture Intel is manufacturing according to Wikipedia.  
**

 **If your brain hurts after reading that, well don't worry about it. There won't be a test or anything.**


	4. Chapter 4

Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke  
A Disney Fairies / Once Upon A Time Crossover  
Season 1, Episode 13, Chapter 4

* * *

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND (The Late Victorian Era)

Immediately after exiting Fairy Tale Theater Tink began to make preparations to leave Never Land in search of that island and the mirror. Her biggest obstacle was a lack of pixie dust. She simply did not have enough to fly all the way to wherever this island was and back while carry the supplies necessary for such an endeavor. Every fairy and sparrow man in Pixie Hollow was allotted a daily ration of dust and no matter who she asked Tink was unable to gather any more.

Then she ran into Terence. Tink could not bear to reveal what happened to the moonstone. Not after last night. She asked him for more dust but refused to explain why. She clarified only that if he truly was a friend he should blindly help. However, taking extra pixie dust beyond the daily rations was against the rules and for good reason. The Pixie Dust Tree produced only so much dust each day and it had to be metered and monitored for everyone. Tink, still hurting from the previous night, snidely rebuked him for not helping and angrily declared that they were no longer friends.

Pixie Hollow seemed doomed to an unending dark age until inspiration struck. To get around the pixie dust problem Tinker Bell began designing an airship made from cotton balls and a hollowed out gourd. The airship, which she dubbed a balloon carrier, could remain aloft for hours with only a tiny pinch of the magic dust. She also designed new clothes to keep her warm from the cooler autumn temperatures outside of the protective aura of Pixie Hollow. Soon she was on her way with supplies and the broken scepter and moonstone. She was determined to succeed. However she now faced another daunting obstacle. Time. The Autumn Revelry was only a few days away and she was searching for an island that was nowhere to be found on any fairy chart.

 **~O~**

That same night after Tink had left the island, Terence had cooled down and went to Tinker Bell's home. He knocked but no one answered. He went inside to check on her, but found only a checklist, an early draft of the map and a few glowing bits of moonstone on the floor. Piecing together what she was doing Terence feared for her life. Whether she blamed him or not she was still his friend and he had to protect her, even from own hardheadedness. Immediately he flew off after her, following as fast as his wings could carry him.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

The large, metal ring had several old fashioned keys dangling from it. They looked like something out of an old black and white horror movie. These were skeleton keys, which the mayor had fashioned to gain entry to just about any house or building in Storybrooke. She used one to open the back door to the Nolan house. She waited until the home was empty to sneak in. On the kitchen counter was the letter which Kathryn had left for David. She took it, slipping the envelope into her purse and then leaving immediately with no tell-tale signs she had ever been there.

With the letter in hand she was ready to make a deal. Not that she wanted to, but this recent development necessitated that she turn to the one person she hated more than anyone in Storybrooke for assistance: Mr. Gold.

 **~O~**

Across from the pharmacy a worried Tina and a giddy Penny waited. A woman in her mid-thirties met them in the alleyway where Tina handed over the money and the woman proceeded to the pharmacy to make the illicit purchase. Moments later she emerged from the store and slowly meandered back to where she met the two girls. As she passed by the woman surreptitiously dropped the pregnancy test into the open backpack of the waiting Penny.

"Okay, let's go," the platinum blonde whispered to her friend. The entire operation was coordinated like a well-oiled machine. It only made Penny all that more thrilled to have pulled it off without anyone noticing.

Tina did note just how much fun Penny was having. The butterflies in her own stomach were making her feel sick, but the squeals of joy from Penny seemed so out of context with her own the situation. During the trip to Main Street Penny kept peppering her friend with questions about technique, location, music, food, emotional state, reasons for having sex and more. She seemed almost not to care for the difficult position Tina had put herself into and Tina started to wonder if her young friend had a mental problem.

* * *

 **~O~**

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

It was late when she heard the footsteps. Princess Abigail turned to see a figure approaching from the light mist that floated in the night air. The shadow of a tall man finally entered the light of the four barrel fires that surrounded the shrine to Prince Frederick.

"You made it," she exclaimed, grateful to see Prince James approach with a water skin in hand.

"I had to," he said with a weary smile, "the fate of your love was at stake."

She took the water skin and immediately doused the gold statue of Frederick. Quickly the curse melted away and Frederick, who had been stuck in a defensive pose, fell to his knees. He was free. Both were.

Abigail nearly cried from the joy she felt at this moment. The prince slowly came to his feet. She took the armored helmet from his head and kissed him deeply. An elegant but passionate kiss that testified to the many days Abigail was without him and to all the times she thought Frederick was lost forever.

The prince got to his feet, but was barely able to hold his own. Abigail held him steady. He eyed the other man and asked, "Who is this?"

Abigail explained all about the curse and how Prince James acquired the water that freed him from it. He shook James' hand in gratitude.

"You two can thank me by walking down the aisle with the person you love most," James replied.

Inspired Prince James decided to pursue Snow White. Abigail offered James water and supplies but asked that he hasten away, King George would be furious once he learned that the union of the two kingdoms had dissolved. George was a vengeful king who would pursue James mercilessly until he had his retribution. "Some people will stop at nothing to keep us from those we love," Abigail told him.

James thanked Abigail for the supplies and rode off in pursuit of the woman he loved most of all.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Henry sat on a bench in front of the school playing the hand held game. Emma sat next to him. When she saw the game she excitedly chimed in, "Oh _Space Paranoids_. I loved that as a kid. Watch it! It's all in the wrist."

Henry successfully dispatched the last Recognizer on that level and then saved his progress. "My mom is coming to pick me up soon," he told Emma. Regina's terms which kept Henry and Emma apart were still in effect. Henry was worried that if Regina found Emma here it would end any further chances of spending time with his biological mother, the woman he had dubbed "the savior."

To Emma it didn't matter, she was just here to drop off something. She would be gone long before Regina arrived. To be done in time she took care of her business with her son. From a courier bag she removed the book _Once Upon A Time_ and showed it to Henry who cheered up instantly when he saw it.

"YOU FOUND IT!"

"Yeah, it was the weirdest thing, I found it in a gutter," she told him. Emma opined that it must have fallen off one of the dump trucks and then bounced around before journeying its way back to her.

Henry thought it might be more than just weird luck. He saw it as a sign. "Operation Cobra is back on," he told her enthusiastically. The poor boy had been so depressed ever since the book was lost. Seeing his face light up the way it did when he saw the book made Emma feel warm and good inside.

She liked it and she liked having her son back in her life.

 **~O~**

Tina paced around in her room. Penny offered to let her take the test at her house, but Tina kept putting it off. Despite the overwhelming anxiety, not knowing was better than finding out for certain that she was pregnant. Tina kept telling herself it was something else, like irritable bowel syndrome or Crohn's Disease.

"I'm not going to do it," she muttered. "If I don't know then it isn't real."

The front door closed and sent the poor girl nearly out of her skin. From the voices Tina discerned that it was her mother and sister. The fear she felt in the pit of her stomach escalated. Tina put the pregnancy test in her desk drawer. She couldn't allow either her mother or sister to discover what she bought.

"Hi, honey," Claire greeted cheerfully, popping her head into Tina's bedroom. She had with her several bags from a local apparel store and something else that Tina couldn't make out.

"MOM!" she yelled back guiltily. _Calm down_. "Hi. Uh, Mom."

"How was studying with Penny today?"

"Great! Uh, good, we lear- I! I mean I learned a lot…, STUDIED! Studied a lot today."

"Okay, great. I'm glad to see you being so responsible," Claire said with a smile. "I can't wait to see your next report card."

Tina laughed nervously. _Yeah, neither can I_ , she thought putting her hand on the drawer where the pregnancy test was hidden.

 **~O~**

Claire went to her bedroom. She put her purchases on the bed. This morning while showering she noticed that she could pinch her waist a bit. Claire had not been very concerned with how she looked ever since Charlie passed away. However, once she started dating Hartley Winter she grew a little self-conscious, but the clothing she wore accentuated her features.

Now that she and Hartley were having sex regularly that was no longer enough. That pinch this morning left her feeling "chubby." Claire decided to remedy that situation. In the bags were exercise shorts, sports bras, loose fitting sweatshirts, leotards, sweatpants, sneakers, wrist weights, a ten pound and a twenty pound kettle bell, resistance bands, a yoga mat and several exercise videos. These DVD's included cardio, aerobics, weight training, Tai Bo and yoga.

"Tonight," she said, beaming with energy. "Tonight I start melting that ugly fat away."

* * *

 **~O~**

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

Prince James did not give up. He found that Snow White had been living with Widow Lucas and her granddaughter Red Riding Hood in a house out in the woods. Snow had come here to seek shelter for one night and made friends with both the girl and the older woman. She wound up staying for much longer.

He happened across Red who was on her way out to fetch eggs from the henhouse. She informed him that Snow was journeying to find him. "She loves you," Red Riding Hood informed him. "That's why she went looking for you."

With that admission James confirmed his suspicions. King George had put her up to it. That was why she came to the castle and painfully admitted to not loving him. Somehow King George had taken power over her and coerced her into saying it.

Red turned, she heard the sounds of several men in armor, riding on horseback, coming over the rise. One fired his crossbow at them. These were the men of King George. Their only purpose was to hunt down and bring back Prince James so that George could exact his revenge upon him. James helped Red onto his horse and together they fled the soldiers and went looking for Snow White.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Late in the evening Kathryn Nolan had put all of her possessions into the trunk of her car and began heading out of town. A light rain fell slicking the streets and highlighting the beams of her car's headlights. She felt better now about leaving. It was going to be a fresh start for her. A new life in a new city, hopefully meeting someone she truly loved and who genuinely loved her back.

With Storybrooke receding in the rear view mirror she thought about David. She wished him and Mary Margaret the best. The letter would explain everything.

 **~O~**

Regina Mills held the letter that Kathryn Nolan had written for her husband. She eyed the envelope momentarily before putting a lit match to it. The corner of the envelope turned dark before catching fire. As the flame licked upwards and blackened more of the stationary Regina tossed it onto the burning logs of her fireplace.

So much for Kathryn's confessions. Now no one would know what happened to her or that she had given her blessing to David and Mary Margaret.

 **~O~**

The elementary school gym teacher, the same one that Kathryn nearly knocked over the other day, was out on a late night drive. It relaxed him most nights, but not this one. He came across a vehicle in a ditch just a few yards from the green road sign that indicated the boundary of Storybrooke. The car belonged to Kathryn Nolan, but no one was inside.

Kathryn was missing.

 **~O~**

"Please no," Tina pleaded. It was just before bedtime. After much vacillating she finally opened the box and took the pregnancy test. Now she was waiting for the results. The instructions were clear, a plus sign meant yes and a negative sign meant no.

Most women in this position would be happy to get a plus sign, but Tina was a sixteen year old teenager still in high school. She had made love to a boy just once and never thought it would be enough to lead to this terrifying moment.

She kept staring. Waiting. Hoping. Until finally an answer revealed itself.

* * *

 **~O~**

AN ISLAND NORTH OF NEVER LAND

Tinker Bell sat sobbing. Her trek had amounted to nothing. She had found the mirror and it did indeed have one last wish in it. Unfortunately she spent it on something utterly worthless. Tink was trying to be as specific as possible to avoid a wish backfire, when a wish made too ambiguously doesn't materialize as planned. Her new friend Blaze, a firefly, was hovering over her shoulder. She could hear his wings beating into her ear.

"I wish…, I wish…," the buzzing agitated her, "Blaze, I wish you would be quite for minute."

Suddenly, the beating of his wings went silent. He couldn't even buzz out a word.

"What? No, that wasn't my wish," Tink said. She pleaded for another, for the mirror to take back the mistake and give her another chance. But it didn't happen.

She tried to blame the firefly. "Blaze this is all your fault!" But it wasn't and she knew it. It was her own mistake. Her anger, arrogance and pigheadedness had brought her to her own ruin.

Earlier Tink lost the balloon carrier and pixie dust supply she was using to make this trek. She tried to pin the blame on Blaze though he was unable to do a thing to stop it. Then she was knocked out of the air by the strong autumn winds and the leaves it kicked up. She fell and hit her head, leaving her unconscious. She dreamt, recalling how the scepter was broken and how poorly she treated Terence. When she woke up Tink realized just how unfair she had been to him. That feeling only got worse when the dust in her wings ran out and she was forced to walk the rest of the way to pirate ship.

Along the way she found the pocket compass. It had come loose from the balloon carrier and landed on the path she was taking. When she opened the top the needle popped it. The point of the needle was indeed very sharp, just as she had asked for. Tink had petulantly told Terence that this was round, not sharp. She had never bothered to look inside. Now she felt so stupid for not trusting him.

This entire journey had shown her just how ugly she had been to everyone around her. Too bad that enlightenment would cost Pixie Hollow its future. Now she was alone. And the one person she wanted close to her right now was none other than Terence, the boy she had run out of her home and later severed all ties with.

"Terence, I wish you were here right now," she wept.

"But I am," he said to her.

Tink saw his bright face in the mirror. "No, Terence, I mean right here. With me."

"Turn around."

Miracle of miracles there he was. Terence had followed her all the way here. He even took a little extra pixie dust to make the trip. He broke the rules, but in his estimation she was worth it. Not the moonstone, not the scepter, but her. In that moment Tink realized just how much she meant to him and how much he meant to her.

The trio escaped the pirate ship, which included avoiding some very hungry rats. Terence had found Tink's airship and moored it at the top of the pirate ship. With the remains of Tink's dust supply they began their sojourn home. At first Tink was going to have to face the fact that there would be no Fall Scepter and no Autumn Revelry this year, or any other year for that matter. Then she had a spark of inspiration and fashioned a scepter from the shards of the broken moonstone, using the mirror's gold frame to form the top and the diamond from the mirror's hilt to distribute the blue moonlight to each shard.

This time, Tink didn't push Terence away, she invited him to help. As they collaborated both felt something deep inside. Something strong and that would only get stronger over time. A special attachment for the other. An attachment which nearly everyone in Pixie Hollow could see growing each and every day.

 **~O~**

"We're done here," Rumpelstiltskin told his companion. The two men were situated on the pirate ship, watching cautiously as the balloon carrier grew smaller and smaller on the horizon.

"That's it?" Jefferson asked. "This was all about two fairies?"

"Not just about two fairies, but about getting them to fall in love."

"Why would you care about that?"

"Oh, I don't care one bit about them," Rumpelstiltskin replied. "But the product of that love, well that's a different story. It might prove to be very useful to me one day. Very useful, indeed."

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Tina held her breath as the pregnancy test finally revealed the symbol. She closed her eyes, hoping for the answer she wanted. She opened her eyes and looked. "Oh no," she breathed, terror stricken. It was a plus sign.

She was pregnant. In an instant her life changed forever. Tears began to well up in her eyes and then streaked down her cheeks. She couldn't believe what she saw. She didn't want to, but it couldn't be denied.

She put her head down on the desk and sobbed. Tina was going to have a baby.

* * *

 **This ends episode 13. Thanks for reading, your feedback is always appreciated.**

 **So what does Rumpelstiltskin want with Tina's baby? Sorry, you'll just have to wait to find out.**

 **Note: Tink and Terence would have fallen for each other eventually, but Rumpelstiltskin was eager for this to happen on his schedule, not theirs.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **A Disney Fairies / Once Upon A Time Crossover**  
 **Season 1, Episode 14, Chapter 1**

* * *

 _These chapters take place before, during and after the first season episode named "Dreamy."_

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

"Nngggkkk!" Claire grunted. "Hungggkkk!" She was attempting a simple yoga pose.

"Okay, one more time. Hunnngggkkk!" She pushed her body up with her arms and legs. Then she slowly walked her feet under her, sticking her butt high into the air. Then she walked her hands closer to the center until finally, "Yes. Downward Facing Dog."

PLOP! She fell to the ground flat, gasping for breath. "I think… I just invented… a new… yoga pose. Lying Flat Mother." She rolled over on the floor of her bedroom to catch her breath. "Who knew yoga could be so difficult?" she asked of the empty room.

Claire rolled back onto the yoga mat she was using. The mat was purple in color and had several yoga poses printed on it for a helpful reference. When she first rolled it out Claire spied the Downward Facing Dog pose. She thought it make for a good first try. The pose was her body in a triangular position with her mid-section as the top point of the triangle. Easy enough.

She was mistaken. Holding her middle up in the air supported only by her hands and feet was much harder than it looked in the drawing. It required more body strength than she initially thought. However, the middle aged mother wasn't about to give up just yet. She was determined to try one more time. If she couldn't do it this second time then she would give up…, for now.

"Okay, here we go." Claire got on hands and knees before shifting her weight from her knees to her feet as she attempted to raise her midsection into a perfect triangle peak.

"Hunnnggggkkkk!" she grunted, once again struggling to lift her body into the pose. Then, "YES! Got it. Now hold and wait for the serenity to fill my body. Or I could just listen to the blood rushing to my head."

The door opened and there stood Vidia, getting a humongous eyeful of the royal posterior. Claire was wearing a pair of leotards with black legs and a yellow torso. The yellow body of the form fitting garment was cut like swimwear and ran down Claire's butt almost thong like between the black leggings. This was the view which greeted Vidia upon opening the bedroom door.

The dismay on Vidia's face was almost palpable throughout the entire room. "Okay, I _did not_ need to see that."

"YAAH!" Claire yelled. KERPLOP! Back onto the yoga mat, her arms and legs spread eagle. "You scared the life out of me, sweetheart," she said to her daughter.

"Are you okay?" Vidia asked. "I heard something fall."

Claire grumbled to herself. _Am I really that heavy?_ she asked herself.

"I'm fine, honey." Claire tried to sit up, but had trouble. The muscles in her body hurt so much from trying these new exercises. "Can you help me up?"

Vidia grabbed Claire by the arms and pulled her to her feet. Claire then explained what she was doing, sort of. "Sorry, Valerie. I'm trying to do some exercises to lose a bit of weight. I'm not as… lithe as I would like to be." Claire left out the part about sleeping with Hartley.

"You look fine," Vidia told her.

"Thank you, sweetie, but I could use the workout. My…, uh…, blood pressure is still a little on the high side."

This part was true. Claire checked her blood pressure every morning and every evening and found that despite her medication and healthier eating it was still elevated. She did notice, though, that it lowered somewhat after she began sleeping with Mr. Winter.

"Hey, I could use a workout buddy. Want to help?"

"Me? Help you?" Vidia was taken aback by this request. For most of her life in Pixie Hollow she wasn't exactly anyone's first choice to do anything with. Even after mellowing out and befriending Tinker Bell Vidia still preferred to live far from everyone else and was as snarky and snippy as ever. For the queen to ask her for such involvement with something so personal was quite the honor.

"Of course," Claire said, reacting with a chuckle. "You're my little girl. Why don't you and I go for a nice jog in the morning?"

"Uh…, okay. Sure." Vidia had gotten used to walking everywhere, finally accepting the fact that she no longer had wings. This, however, was entirely different. She was going to walk and run not to reach a destination but simply to walk and run. For health reasons, as Claire put it.

"Great, I'll wake you early in the morning," Claire said. "Wear something comfortable and warm. Oh, and then we have to take a drive to Mr. Gold's Pawn Shop. I need to make the monthly payment on the house."

Mr. Gold, as far as she knew, was still in jail. However, his two henchmen were operating the store and they were as ruthless and unyielding as their boss.

 **~O~**

"Come on, slowpoke!" Claire yelled back to her daughter.

Slowpoke?! No one had called her that. Ever. Vidia was the fastest fast flyer in all of Pixie Hollow. No one could outfly her. But this wasn't Pixie Hollow and she wasn't a fast flyer. Vidia was human and today Claire was outpacing her on their morning jog.

"Wait… wait for me," Vidia gasped. "I need… I need to sit down." Vidia barely made it to the start of the next block where she sat down on a two foot high retaining wall that was part of someone's front yard. She gulped down air filling her lungs with the reinvigorating oxygen. Claire's pedometer told them they had already covered nearly two miles on their round trip run this morning. Vidia could believe it. Underneath all of her layers of warmth against the bitter February cold she was sweating like a tinker fairy.

"Whoo! Y'know, if we were back in Pixie Hollow this wouldn't even be close," she boasted. "I would be winning in a laugher."

"Well this is Storybrooke, dear, and right now I'm kicking your butt," Claire answered with a playful smugness.

This was a challenge. Vidia wanted nothing more than to prove she was still the best at something. Ever since waking up here in Storybrooke as a human her one claim to greatness, her speed, was gone. She had nothing to separate herself from everyone else. She needed something to soothe her bruised ego.

She took a few sips of water from her bottle and exhaled the exhaustion from her body. When she felt ready Vidia threw down the gauntlet. "How about a little race?" she asked her mother. "A sprint to the end of the next block."

Claire thought about it for a moment. "What do _I_ get when _I_ win?" she asked with a smirk.

"Winner buys breakfast at Granny's," Vidia answered. "And I like my eggs poached, thank you very much."

"Big talk from someone who couldn't keep up on a simple jog," Claire teased.

"I'm really more about all out speed and no one is faster than I am," Vidia responded. "So, shaking in your sneakers yet?"

"Oh I'll be shaking something, alright," Claire answered her. "I'll be shaking that bill from Granny's under your nose. And I'm feeling like steak and eggs this morning. Ready? Slowpoke?"

SLOWPOKE? That did it. "Let's do this thing."

Both women lined up side by side in a starter's stance. "On one," Claire announced. "Three, two…"

Claire was interrupted by the blare of a car horn. Hartley's work van pulled up next to them. She smiled broadly when Claire saw him. "Wait here," she instructed Valerie.

"Humph, saved by the boyfriend," Vidia muttered. She took advantage of the interruption to rest further and sip water from her bottle.

Claire happily bounded to the driver's side window of the work van to speak with Hartley. Normally Vidia wouldn't sit and watch Queen Clarion and Lord Milori carry on, but today Claire was flirting with Hartley Winter quite shamelessly. She couldn't turn away.

First Claire pulled her hair behind an ear. Then she pushed out her chest, making her breasts more pronounced. When he said something in particular to her she giggled like a schoolgirl and turned several shades of red. Then she gave him a doe eyed look which Vidia had never seen from Queen Clarion before. When Hartley leaned over a bit more she stood up on her tip toes. This had the effect of accentuating the curves of her legs and backside. As their conversation closed they kissed and she lifted one foot high into the air.

Vidia much preferred the restrained, courtly romance that Queen Clarion and Lord Milori conducted back in Pixie Hollow. At least that didn't make her feel sick to her stomach.

Claire watched as the van drove off. She had a dreamy look in her eyes, her cheeks were blushing crimson and she nearly whimpered as the van turned the corner.

Vidia, who had seen more than her fill of television, had exactly the right snarky remark prepared. "Want a cigarette?"

"Huh!? What!?" Claire swung around and for a moment looked absolutely terrified. For a split second she looked as if Vidia had figured out a deeply embarrassing state secret.

"Ha! Cigarette. I see what you did there. Very funny. Okay, little miss smarty pants, let's see if those chicken legs of yours can run as fast as your mouth."

Vidia bolted up straight. "You'll eat those words," she sassed.

Once again they took a starter's stance and Claire counted down. "Three, two, one, go!"

Both women took off in a shot down the walkway, legs pushing faster and faster as they accelerated past the first two houses. Vidia began to feel a burn in her thighs by the fourth home. It didn't matter at the moment, though. She was enjoying this. The air hitting her face, the wind in her hair, that sense of exhilaration that comes from pushing herself to the very limit and then going beyond it.

It all came back to her. Not only that, but she was taking the lead in the race. They were halfway down the block and Claire had fallen behind. Vidia smiled even more. _I'm still the fastest_ , she mused.

"Move over, slowpoke!" Claire yelled. Vidia turned to her left and saw Claire suddenly neck and neck with her.

How did that happen? Vidia must have slowed down a bit when she started congratulating herself before the race was won. She pushed harder, pumping her legs even faster than before. Vidia found herself gulping air again trying to keep pace. Just when it seemed as if she was going to lose Claire fell back. She stopped running altogether and even coughed while breathing hard.

"Okay, you win. Poached it is," Claire said. "I'm getting… too old for this stuff."

Vidia stopped her running and had to lean over to catch her own breath. Being human was even harder than she thought. How do those athletes on television do it? She was operating under the same false assumption as Claire: that hard, physical labor performed eight to ten hours a day would prepare them for a brisk morning jog or a modestly strenuous exercise routine. What they both forgot was that working on the job wasn't the same as doing yoga or a sustained run.

Vidia dropped to her knees while Claire leaned up against a lamppost.

"Remind me… never… to do… that… again," Claire said between deep inhales of breath.

Vidia just raised her arm in agreement, she could hardly speak while sucking wind so badly. It took a rather long time for both women to recover from the sprint. The only consolation Vidia could take away from this was that she had won. However, that wasn't as clear a victory as she preferred. Claire had caught up to her and only lost because she bowed out of the race a few seconds before Vidia did.

It was a harsh reminder of everything that had been taken away from her by Regina and her evil curse. Taken from her and from every other fairy who was brought here against their will by that horrid woman's thirst for vengeance against Snow White.

"Sweetie, are you okay?" Claire asked. "You look sick."

"No, I'm fine," Vidia replied. "That took more out of me than I expected."

"Agreed. Why don't we walk the rest of the way home?"

"I have a better idea, let's get Tina to come and get us," Vidia suggested. "I could use a car ride about now."

Claire laughed. She felt exactly the same way. "Let's compromise. We can sleep in this weekend."

"Deal!"

* * *

 **Yeah, I was in kind of a silly mood when I wrote this one.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **A Disney Fairies / Once Upon A Time Crossover**  
 **Season 1, Episode 14, Chapter 2**

* * *

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

All Nova wanted was to be a fairy godmother like The Blue Fairy. These were huge aspirations for the pink clad fairy. Today, however, she was tasked with delivering the annual supply of fairy dust. Nova, though determined, was a cute but rather clumsy and absent minded fairy of the Enchanted Forest. She followed Blue from the mines to perform her deliveries, but nearly lost the sack of fairy dust in the process.

That sack represented an entire year's supply for all the fairies of the Enchanted Forest. The fairy dust was made from diamonds mined by the dwarfs and ground down to unleash the magic the diamonds held within them. When Nova stumbled off the cloud she inadvertently spilled out just a bit of that precious dust. It filtered down through air vents in the earth and landed inside the dwarf's nursery on one of the huge eggs being cared for here.

That egg, which was the size of a man, began to twitch and shiver. "It looks like someone is eager to hatch before his brothers," Bossy, the leader of the dwarves observed.

Watchy, the dwarf in charge of the nursery and who watched over all the eggs couldn't believe it. "It can't be," he replied while checking the egg with his stethoscope, "it's not due to hatch until tonight."

Nonetheless, the egg cracked and out hatched a dwarf, fully grown, wearing a nightgown and sporting a full, dark colored beard with streaks of white in it. His face was worn and leathery and his eyes were dark, but sparkled with wonder and joy at the new world he was born into. This dwarf was one of eight. His brothers, once they hatched later that evening, were taken to an area where each was washed, groomed and dressed by others of their kind.

A dwarf has one love and only one love: to work in the mines, digging out diamonds that were to be ground into magic fairy dust. That dust was the most precious substance in all the land. This dwarf, however, was different from the moment he hatched.

"Who was she?" he asked. This dwarf had seen a vision of a beautiful woman and he was in love with her. Bossy laughed. All dwarves were male. Dwarves, you see, don't fall in love and they don't get married, and they don't have children. They're hatched and then spend their entire lives working in the mines. Yet this dwarf insisted he was in love with this beautiful woman that he saw right before hatching.

The dwarf and his seven brothers were brought to the mines where they were each handed an axe. These axes were magical. When a newly hatched dwarf took hold of one, the axe gave him his dwarf name. That name mysteriously appeared on the handle looking as if it had been burned into the wood. First was a white haired dwarf with glasses. The axe named him "Doc."

Another dwarf, who sneezed, was named "Sneezy." The next one, who yawned as he took his axe was named "Sleepy." Following him came "Bashful," "Stealthy," "Happy" and "Dopey." When the dwarf who emerged early took his axe his dwarf name that immediately imprinted on the handle was "Dreamy."

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

"And how would you like your eggs?" Ruby asked Valerie.

"Poached," she answered smugly while looking at Claire.

"Okay, so that's one steak and eggs ranchero plate; one two egg breakfast, poached; and one two egg breakfast over medium," Ruby repeated. "All three with bacon, grits and toast."

"And three iced teas," Claire added.

"Make mine sweet," Tina chirped up.

"Got it." Ruby smiled as she took the order back to the kitchen.

Claire narrowed her eyes at Vidia who was still basking in the glow of her wind sprint victory earlier this morning. "Okay, that's enough smart ass," Claire told her. "There's reveling and then there's rubbing your opponent's nose in it."

 _Smart ass_? The queen's language was becoming more and more common and crude, Vidia thought. It wasn't as if she had never heard that kind of language before. It was spoken regularly on the television shows and movies she occasionally watched in her room. Still, despite Clarion being human and not remembering who she was it was still a big shock coming from her.

Moments after their food arrived two men walked in and approached the counter. There they found Leroy trying to eat his soft boiled egg.

 **~O~**

Leroy was in a foul mood, as usual. He was a bitter and cynical man who felt like life had kicked him in the gut and left him in the gutter. Leroy drank regularly to drown his sorrows and was known throughout Storybrooke as the town drunk. His grumpy disposition endeared him to no one which, in his eyes, validated his poor attitude towards everyone.

This morning started like most days before taking a turn for the worse. He had barely sat down to breakfast at the counter at Granny's Diner when Mr. Clark and his buddy Walter walked up and asked if he could move over so they could sit together. The diner was busy with the morning rush. All the tables were occupied and there were only two empty stools at the counter, one on either side of Leroy.

"If you wanted to sit together why don't you try dragging your sorry asses out of bed earlier next time?" Leroy spat in his gravelly voice.

Mr. Clark the pharmacist who, ironically, couldn't stop sneezing let loose a big one all over Leroy's food. Disgusted he threw down some money for the uneaten plate and got up from his seat.

"I've lost my appetite," he groused.

At that exact moment Mary Margaret walked in and asked for everyone's attention.

Miner's Day was coming up and the schoolteacher was seeking volunteers to help her sell candles to help support the nuns, their school and their convent. She tried to be as happy and chirpy as possible, but as soon as she ended her little speech everyone turned their backs to her and went back to what they were doing.

Most people in the diner were incredulous that Mary Margaret Blanchard of all people would be trying to enlist the aid of others. This was made abundantly clear to her when Leroy walked up to her.

"Leroy, do you want to volunteer?" she asked hopefully.

"I'm trying to leave, sister, and you're blocking the door."

Mary Margaret pleaded with him but he was not in a receptive mood. No one would listen to the two most despised people in Storybrooke, the town drunk and the town harlot. In fact, the only person the townspeople hated more than Leroy was Mary Margaret. "If you're coming to me for help then you're screwed," he told her right before pushing past her to get to the door.

Ms. Blanchard realized he was right. She had done this to herself and nearly began to cry as she left the restaurant. One person seemed to take pity on her, Sheriff Emma Swan who followed her out.

* * *

 **~O~**

THE WINTER WOODS, NEVER LAND (The Late Victorian Era)

Periwinkle was lying on her bed in her home which overlooked Pixie Hollow. She was flipping through the book of butterflies that Dewey had given her a few seasons before. Hanging from the ceiling was a mobile of ice sculpted butterflies which was also a gift from Dewey. The Keeper of All Fairy Knowledge was one of her closest and dearest friends. He was almost like a grandfatherly figure to her.

In her off hours Periwinkle spent the plurality of her time in his library reading the books of which Dewey was the caretaker. Peri had read most of his accounts about the warm seasons, but she didn't mind perusing them again and again. She longed to visit that colorful world but couldn't because of the rule that prevented winter fairies from crossing the border. She looked up from the butterfly drawings and peered out across the vast and lush greenery that was far beyond her reach and sighed.

Periwinkle stood at the ledge of her apartment and scanned the entirety of Pixie Hollow. From her perch high atop the mountain she could see almost all of her world. Three fourths of it were totally off limits to her. From the corner of her eye she spotted a lone, glittering figure fluttering his way to the border.

"It's time," she squeaked.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

"Maybe we should volunteer?" Vidia asked Claire. She still remembered the kindness Ms. Blanchard showed her several weeks ago when she fell ill.

"No," Claire replied forcefully. "I used to think very highly of that woman, but what she did to the Nolan's was disgusting and despicable. Breaking up a happy marriage is an act of desperate selfishness and reeks of no moral background. I don't want either of you to go near her ever again, is that understood?"

Tina agreed, though Vidia wasn't as firm in her reply as Claire would have preferred. The mother understood why, too. It's hard not to feel sorry for someone when they've shown you compassion and kindheartedness. Claire felt those opposing emotions within herself. First, Claire had been in Ms. Blanchard's shoes before. She knew what it was like when this town turned its back on you. (Claire was exonerated both with the missing iPad and the fire that damaged Town Hall.)

Second, Ms. Blanchard was also Tina's grade school teacher and worked diligently to keep Claire informed of the girl's progress. She also took in Valerie when Claire foolishly kicked her out of the house and later Mary Margaret provided her a job to earn money when she needed it most.

Claire, though had something else that weighed in her decision, she had a responsibility to her children. She had to be an upright and moral person whom her girls could look up to and emulate. Assisting Ms. Blanchard at this moment was, in her opinion, akin to advocating what she did to the Nolan's. That was not the message she wanted to send to Valeria and Tina.

 **~O~**

Leroy was walking through town square where the preparations for Miner's Day were underway when someone carelessly dropped glitter on his head. He was about to let out a curse laden tirade when he looked up and saw a young and adorable looking nun atop a ladder painting and glittering a banner.

The nun who went by the name Sister Astrid apologized profusely. It was clear from how she acted that Sister Astrid was a well-meaning if somewhat clumsy and absented minded woman. Leroy, who always wore a scowl on his face, immediately lit up when he saw her. He began smiling from ear to ear.

Sister Astrid was also having great difficulty with a strings of lights that she had spent the better part of the morning hanging throughout the square. None of the strings would light up. Leroy graciously offered to climb the ladder to see what the problem was. As it turned out, Sister Astrid had plugged too many strings into one socket. When he distributed them to other outlets the lights lit up perfectly.

Astrid was astonished at how quickly he was able to solve her problem and was grateful for his timely intervention. "Oh, you're my hero," she gushed.

"It was nothing, sister," Leroy replied.

"Oh, you can all me Astrid," she said.

"I call everyone 'sister,'" he told her. Leroy told Astrid that he worked as custodian for a living and while she found it admirable Leroy disliked his work and lowly status in town. He owned a boat which needed fixing up. It was Leroy's intention to eventually leave Storybrooke on that boat once it was in good enough shape. He planned on many grand adventures on the high seas. Astrid was quite fascinated by his big dreams. Leroy, though, wasn't sure he could pull it off.

Astrid, though, gave him some advice. "Someone once told me 'you can do anything, as long as you can dream it.'"

Leroy liked hearing that. It gave him the confidence to try and break out of the life he hated so much.

 **~O~**

Emma caught up with Mary Margaret as she walked down the sidewalk. The sheriff had watched that terrible scene back in the restaurant. "What's Miner's Day?" she asked.

Miner's Day, Ms. Blanchard explained, was an annual holiday that celebrated the history of Storybrooke when the nun's used to trade candles for coal with miners in the area.

"Coal? In Maine?" Swan asked incredulous. "If they were mining for lobsters I could understand."

The point was that this was a big deal and Mary Margaret was trying to use the charity to get back into the town's good graces. Unfortunately, things weren't going very well. All of her volunteers dropped out and each person told her it was because she wrecked the Nolan's marriage. Everyone in town hated her.

Well, almost everyone. Emma was still on her side. Mary Margaret was at least grateful for that.

Emma's phone beeped. Her services were needed elsewhere.

* * *

 **~O~**

THE WINTER WOODS, NEVER LAND (The Late Victorian Era)

Sled was going to the border to receive the animals as they crossed from the Autumn Forest. Because no one was allowed to cross, or even make face to face contact, Sled stayed far enough away to not be seen as the warm fairies brought the cute and furry critters to the border. The animals were being brought to the Winter Woods so they could eat their fill of food and then hibernate. This was a key skill they would need to survive when the animals were brought to the mainland next spring.

Periwinkle didn't stay away, she slid up closer to the border to peer across the river that separated the winter regions from the warm zones. She had done this before and was floored by what she saw. This year was no different. Periwinkle was greeted with an amazing array of the most beautiful colors she had ever seen. In the Winter Woods there only three dominant colors: white, black and various icy blues.

Not here. The Autumn Forest was a spectacular kaleidoscope of crimsons, golds, ambers, oranges and browns. And it was that way for every leaf on every tree. This was as an amazing experience today as it had been the first time she stole her way to the border. She was having a grand day taking in the sumptuous visuals that not even Dewey's books could properly capture.

She watched the weasels and bunny rabbits cross and change from their warm weather coats of browns and greys to their winter coats of brilliant white. One of the fairies was having a problem with the last animal who had apparently fallen asleep on the other side. Periwinkle chuckled as she heard the animal fairy yell to wake the creature.

"Rise and shine!" Periwinkle remembered that voice from her last visit. Fawn. But there was another voice at the border she didn't recognize. It was another female. Peri waited and listened for the final animal to cross. Then, suddenly, her hiding place began to glow. She felt a strange tingling in her back. Craning her neck Periwinkle realized it was her own wings that were glowing.

She gasped with amazement and anxiety. What did it mean? What was causing it? Why didn't it happen the last time she visited the border? All Periwinkle knew was that something was happening to her. Something wonderful.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

"Well, what happened?" Penny asked over the phone. Tina had been dropped off at school just minutes earlier when Penny called her. The bell hadn't sounded just yet to start the first period allowing Tina to take the call. "Did you take the test last night?" Penny said, questioning her.

"Yes," Tina answered. "But I'm not pregnant. Everything is just fine."

* * *

 **Nova = Sister Astrid**

 **Leroy = Dreamy / Grumpy**

 **The Blue Fairy = Mother Superior**


	7. Chapter 7

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **A Disney Fairies / Once Upon A Time Crossover**  
 **Season 1, Episode 14, Chapter 3**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Claire dropped of Tina at school and then drove back to Main Street. "Where are we going?" Valerie asked.

"To the bank," Claire answered. She needed to draw out money to pay Mr. Gold this month and then a little bit more for Tina's birthday party. "She's turning seventeen in a couple of days. Unfortunately, it won't be a big and extravagant party like last year when she turned sixteen. It will just have to be the three of us."

Birthday? Of course, humans celebrated the day of their births. The fairies of Pixie Hollow weren't born in the traditional sense. They arrived at Never Land Island so they celebrated an Arrival Day Anniversary each year. "Don't forget Penny," Vidia reminded her mother.

Claire snapped her fingers. "Thanks. I nearly forgot. Do you think I should invite Clarence?"

"Absolutely," Vidia insisted. She would have preferred to have all of Tink's friends there, but Claire wouldn't understand having all of these strange people in her house.

 **~O~**

"I'm sorry Mrs. Kensington, you don't have enough in your account to cover this withdrawal," the bank teller, a young girl almost Valerie's age, informed Claire.

"What? No, the money is in there," she insisted. "Check it again."

The young girl tapped her computer keyboard and replied. "No, I'm sorry. You're account has insufficient funds for this withdrawal."

"You must be doing something wrong," Claire answered sounding desperate. "Is there a manger or someone I could speak to?"

The young lady teller, never once breaking her pleasant smile, called for an account specialist. Claire and Valerie sat at a desk where the specialist, a man in his thirties wearing a slim cut suit and skinny tie pulled up her account and repeated what the bank teller said. Claire did not have enough funds to cover the withdrawal she requested.

"Well someone has drained my bank account," Claire suggested. "Did someone break into your computer and steal my money?"

The account specialist, who was named Stephen, was not amused. "Would you like to see the transaction list to verify the previous withdrawals on the account?"

"Yes, please."

Claire was a handed several printouts. She reviewed each one and realized that she was the person who drained out her account. The light bill, water bill, gas, garbage collection, credit card payments, home and auto insurance, business insurance and medical coverage premiums were all big payouts. The biggest this month so far was Valerie's hospital payment. The medical insurance didn't cover Valerie's hospital stay after her motorcycle accident because it occurred during the commission of a crime.

However, what stunned Claire the most weren't the big bills, but the small withdrawals she had made during the month. She had nickeled and dimed herself out of her money. Several meals at Granny's Diner and other restaurants in town, clothing purchases, her exercise equipment and various other expenses had left her with too little to pay off her debt.

"Oh no." Claire had to make her payment today or else she would lose the house. This time she didn't have anything of value to offer Mr. Gold. What was she to do?

* * *

 **~O~**

THE WINTER WOODS, NEVER LAND (The Late Victorian Era)

Periwinkle was pacing the floor of her room frantically. She was at a complete loss. Her wings were glowing at the border. She had no idea why. "This didn't happen last time," she kept muttering to herself. The little frost fairy nearly hyperventilated from the anxiety.

Her first action was to return to the border to see if it happened again. Finding her hiding place she sat and waited. This time the splendid colors of the other side had no impact on her, she didn't even register them. Peri's mind kept focusing on her wings. She kept thinking back to what was different from before. Was it something she did? Something she said? Maybe it was the wrong time of day.

With the sun dipping low in the horizon she returned to her home exhausted from the apprehension and disappointed that she could not duplicate the results. "What could it mean?" she asked herself. Peri started to wonder if she had just imagined it. If it was all just in her head. Perhaps she had built up the warm side so much in her imagination that it took on an almost magical quality in her mind.

"Then why didn't my wings light up during my first visit?" she reasoned. "Or just now?"

The deep crimsons of the evening were replaced by a dark blue night sky. It was late and although she was fully drained from the experience Peri was still thrilled from the discovery. She could barely sleep that night and when she did her dreams were filled with images of glowing fairy wings.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Leroy walked into the parochial school that the nuns operated. Inside one of the classrooms more preparations were underway. There he found Mary Margaret at a table. "I want to volunteer," he told her.

"No. No you don't, Leroy," she growled, "you made that perfectly clear at Granny's this morning."

"Well maybe I saw the light," he replied, determined to change her mind.

Mary Margaret didn't really want him to be her volunteer, but she was desperate. "Okay, but there rules. No swearing, no drinking and I call all the shots," she said trying shoving a signup sheet into his chest.

At another table Leroy saw Sister Astrid speaking to Mother Superior. It was a short, but animated talk that apparently left Astrid looking beleaguered and on the verge of tears. He walked up to her to find out what was wrong.

Astrid explained that the nuns and their convent received a monthly stipend which was carefully budgeted out except for the part where she accidentally bought twelve DOZEN large cylinders of helium instead of just twelve. Unfortunately, the supplier she bought them from did not take returns or offer refunds. Without that stipend the nuns wouldn't be able to pay their rent which was due next week.

"Why not ask your landlord to cut you a break?" Leroy asked, helpfully offering a suggestion.

Unfortunately their landlord was Mr. Gold himself and he was ready to evict them if they didn't have the money. The only form of income the nun's had were the candles they sold. In order to cover her gaffe they would need to sell at least a thousand of them. Last year the order only managed to sell forty two. If the nuns were kicked out of their school and convent the order would be reassigned and relocated outside of Storybrooke.

"Yeah, well don't worry, sister. You have me this year," Leroy boasted, "and I'm going to sell them all."

 **~O~**

When Sydney Glass arrived at the town line after receiving a hot tip he found that Sheriff Emma Swan had preceded him by several minutes and was already photographing a car which was lying in a ditch just off the main road. Glass grabbed his shiny, new, professional digital camera while Sheriff Swan was using an old Polaroid 600 Instant Camera. The abandoned car belonged to none other than Kathryn Nolan, the woman whose husband had very publicly left her for another woman.

Upon learning of the car's ownership Sydney was convinced that there was skullduggery afoot. A scandal of this nature could get him his job at the newspaper back. Emma, though, wasn't going to make any kind of assumptions just yet. She reasoned that perhaps the car simply stalled out and that Kathryn just went on foot to the nearest town or storefront to continue on to Boston.

That all changed when she opened the trunk and found all of Mrs. Nolan's possessions still in the car. Suddenly, what began a simple abandoned car, had turned into a missing person's case. To track down Kathryn's whereabouts she needed to know whom she spoke with last. She mentioned in passing that she would need all of Kathryn Nolan's phone records for the past few days. Mr. Glass told her it would take days or weeks to get those, but he had a contact at the phone company who could acquire them in just a couple of hours.

It was exactly what she needed. Her investigation could begin in earnest.

* * *

 **~O~**

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

"Oh no. Help. HELP!" cried Nova the fairy. It had been a full year and Nova was back in the mines. She was collecting dust for the year, but the spout from the hopper wouldn't shut off. She kept pushing the lever that would close the spigot but it wouldn't move. "HELP!"

A dwarf with a leathery face, dark eyes and a trimmed beard with white streaks in it raced up to assist her. She was grateful for his assistance. Before she could say another word the dwarf's face just lit up with joy and said, "It's you. You're the woman I saw in my dreams when I hatched last year."

"You're one?"

"Yeah, I look young for my age," he said sheepishly.

While they were talking Nova put the bag of fairy dust down, but wasn't paying attention to where. She had placed it on an elevator which took trash to a conveyer that went to an incinerator. By the time she realized what she had done, the sack of dust was on its way to being burned up.

Nova was at wit's end for what to do. Dreamy, though, sprang into action. He climbed up the structure which held the conveyer belt aloft and tracked down the sack of dust. Using his axe Dreamy snatched the bag off the moving belt a half second before it was to be dumped into the fires of the incinerator.

"Oh, you're my hero," Nova gushed as he presented her with the bag of dust, safe and sound. Unfortunately, this incident only further convinced Nova that was too incompetent to do anything right. Now she would never achieve her dreams of becoming a fairy godmother.

Dreamy thought otherwise. "I think you would make a great fairy godmother," he told her.

"You do?"

"I can believe you can do anything you want, as long as you can dream it," he told Nova. She smiled happily. Dreamy was the first person who believed in her. Not even her own supervisor, The Blue Fairy, had shown any kind of faith in Nova. In fact, when she first broached the idea of becoming a fairy godmother Blue just laughed at her. "Oh, Nova, you are such a dreamer," Blue told her, insinuating that her reach would always be beyond her grasp.

She introduced herself to him. "I'm Nova."

"I'm Dreamy," he replied.

Nova was completely taken by this dwarf. And it seemed that he was taken with her. Fairies spend very little time in their world. As it turned out Dwarfs don't see much of the world, either. They live and work in the mines all their lives. They only come up to visit the tavern or eat.

Nova wanted to make a stop this evening before returning to her fairy home. She started talking about fireflies. They came out just after sundown on Firefly Hill and they were a most beautiful sight.

"Sounds fun," he told her. "Have a good time."

She was perplexed by his response. She turned to leave with her dust, but as she left the mines she called back to him. "Dreamy? You're my hero."

* * *

 **~O~**

THE WINTER WOODS, NEVER LAND (The Late Victorian Era)

"Where have you been?" Spike asked Periwinkle. They had come to her apartment home high on the mountain overlooking Pixie Hollow. She had missed practice yesterday and didn't show today. "Fairy Nina is worried sick. We all are. Now let's go."

Periwinkle had spent the morning back at the border hiding and waiting. She kept trying to recreate what occurred yesterday. Her wings still did not sparkle. Now that she had returned to her home, Peri debated whether to tell anyone what happened. Ultimately, she was too excited and anxious ridden not to confide in someone.

"I went to the border yesterday to watch the animals cross," she revealed to an astonished Spike and Gliss.

"Really? What was it like?" Gliss asked bouncing up and down giddily.

Spike wasn't so understanding. "You did what?! You can't do that. Is this why you missed yesterday? We thought you were sick."

"My wings sparkled," Periwinkle then added.

"Sparkled?" Gliss and Spike both looked at her funny. "Are you sure it wasn't the heat getting to you?" Spike asked sarcastically.

"No, I'm certain." Periwinkle then began to smile and gasp. "Something incredible happened over there and I have to found out what it was."

"Ooh, ooh, ooh, have you tried asking The Keeper?" Gliss suggested. "He knows everything. Well, almost everything. He's never explained why Spike is so lazy sometimes."

"I am not lazy," Spike protested. "I'm languid."

"Do you really think I can ask Dewey?" Periwinkle wanted to, but she was worried he would report her to Lord Milori. At about that time Gliss became distracted from the conversation by a warbling sound. She looked out and saw Snowy Owls carrying snowflake baskets from the warm seasons. They were headed for the landing zone where the snowflake fairies would load them up for delivery to the mainland.

"Oh, there here. There here!" she squealed like an excited child, bouncing up and down on her feet. She grabbed Spike's arm and nearly shook it off while practically begging. "Come on, Spike. I want to see the owls bring the baskets."

"What should I do?" Periwinkle asked.

Gliss, who just wanted to leave told Periwinkle that Dewey was the understanding sort and wouldn't tell on her. "Now let's go."

The two fairies lit off to watch the owls make their landing before reporting back to the Frost Forest. "What do we tell Fairy Nina?" Gliss asked.

"We tell her the truth," Spike responded. "That she's with the Keeper. And that's all we're going to say."

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Claire brought her truck to a screeching halt in front of her house. A large black vehicle was parked out front. It was Mr. Gold and his two henchmen. "What are you doing here?" she asked him, angry and desperate.

"I'm here to take possession of _my_ house," he told her.

When she left the bank Claire phoned Mr. Gold's pawn shop and spoke with one of his staff. It was a long shot, but she asked if it would was alright to pay half of what she owed now and the rest in a couple of days. They explained to her that the contract explicitly stated she had to make full payment on the due date or forfeit the house and its contents.

Claire turned the truck towards home desperate to sell what she could by day's end to cover the difference for her payment. Barring that, at least remove necessities and everything of value that she and Valerie could stuff into the two vehicles. When she got there Mr. Gold was waiting for her. Astonishingly, he was out of jail and back to his old bag of tricks.

"No. This is my house!" Claire yelled defiantly. "My home, not yours."

"Oh, I beg to disagree," he said in his usual calm tone of voice. When Mr. Gold spoke he rarely injected any emotion. He was all business all the time. This had the effect of making him all that more frightening. He was implacable. "You made it quite plain that you would not be able to make your payment today. The terms of our agreement are quite specific about what happens next. I get your house and everything inside of it."

One of his henchmen posted a sign on the door which read "FORECLOSURE."

"What? You can't do this," Claire shouted. "I'll…, I'll."

"You'll what? Sue me? There isn't a lawyer in town who would rule in your favor on this matter," he said. "Not even your little friend, Ms. Van Buren. Our contract is _iron clad_."

Gold put an emphasis on the words "iron clad." He clearly relished saying that. And not just with Claire, but with anyone who dared to challenge his contracts or deals. Nothing he ever did left him in a disadvantageous position. Mr. Gold was the master of finding those in desperate need and taking them for all they were worth.

Vidia watched her queen stand by helplessly. Mr. Gold refused to allow Claire entry to retrieve anything. No pictures, blankets, clothing, computers. Not even the minivan was safe. It was on the property so Gold declared it forfeit. All they were going to have left was the clothes on their backs.

She could not let this happen. Vidia took her cell phone, flipped it open and called up the one person who might be able to help. "Hello, Mr. Winter? You need to get over here right now. Mr. Gold is here and he is trying to take the house."

* * *

 **Thanks to everyone who is still reading. Enjoy this new chapter.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **A Disney Fairies / Once Upon A Time Crossover**  
 **Season 1, Episode 14, Chapter 4**

* * *

THE WINTER WOODS, NEVER LAND (The Late Victorian Era)

Periwinkle decided to take her friends' advice and consult with the Keeper of All Fairy Knowledge. His books contained nearly the entire history of Pixie Hollow and almost every ounce of known information about her kind. (Only the most ancient knowledge was passed down by minstrels, before writing developed). If anyone could explain why her wings glowed it was him. Still, she was apprehensive that Lord Milori might find out.

The young frost fairy was so riddled with anxiety during her flight to the library that she failed to notice a green clad figure walking among the tall trees below. When the green figure noticed Periwinkle flying overhead it stopped for a second and then darted for the nearest tree, flattening itself against the trunk as if trying to avoid detection.

Periwinkle landed in front of the library doors. Her heart was in her throat. Peri's nerves were getting the best of her. "It's okay. Dewey is a friend. Remember that." She pushed opened the doors and went inside.

"Dewey," Periwinkle called out apprehensively. She looked around for her friend. "Dewey?"

"Right here, my dear," he said descending from one of his shelves. "Now then what can I help you with today? More books on butterflies?"

Periwinkle took in a deep breath before proceeding. "Dewey, I need your help."

"It's mine to give, you know that," he said with a generous smile.

She was about to tell him everything when she changed her strategy at the last second. "Dewey, do… do you have any books on fairy wings?"

"Well, it's a-strange that you should ask me that," he replied. "Sled just dropped off this book on Wingology. Unfortunately, some of the pages have been chewed up by the book worms from the warm side."

Dewey held up the book he was speaking about. She noticed immediately that it was not written on sheets of ice, but leaf paper. The cover was a brightly colored blue and cut out in the shape of fairy wings. She asked to flip through it and discovered that the pages she needed were unreadable. Whatever a book worm was, it had damaged her last gasp hope before resorting to directly asking her friend.

Peri took in a few deep breaths before continuing. "Dewey, I have to ask you a question. But I need you to promise me something." It hurt her deeply to ask such a promise from him. He was a most trusted friend and mentor. She was afraid he would be insulted.

He smiled at her. "What is it you need to ask me?"

"Please. Don't…," she couldn't do it. She couldn't ask him. "D…, please hear me out first. Yesterday, I went… I went to the border to see the animals cross."

Dewey's cheery smiled vanished. "Oh… oh dear. The Lord Milori is not going to like this. Not one bit."

"Please. Please let me finish," she pleaded with him.

Dewey fluttered up closer to her and took her hands in his. "Go ahead, child." Periwinkle was relieved. His voice wasn't filled with fury nor did he admonish her. Instead, he seemed to be taking an interest in what she had to say and she got the immediate sense he genuinely wanted to help her. This gave Periwinkle a good feeling inside and she now had the confidence to continue.

"While I was there something happened. Something I can't explain."

"What was it, dear?" he asked, fascinated by her story.

Periwinkle began to hyperventilate again just thinking about it. Her anxiety then started melting away and was being replaced by anticipation. Her answers were just seconds away. "Dewey, it was the most incredible thing. I was at the border watching the animals from a hiding place. Everything seemed normal and then all of a sudden my wings started to sparkle."

"Sparkle?" As soon as he heard that word he got the funniest look in his eyes, as though having just made the most incredible discovery. "Yes. One moment my wings were fine and then they just lit up. I couldn't believe it and-," she gasped. The glow she had experienced before suddenly returned. "It's happening again. Look! It's happening again! What's going on? What does it mean?"

Dewey leaned over and looked beyond her. "Oh ho, ho! I think I see your answer and its right behind you."

Periwinkle turned around. Standing before her was a green clad fairy with bright, blonde hair tied up in a bun. She was wrapped up in a coat and leggings with tall shoes that looked very warm. This fairy was not like any she knew in the Winter Woods. She was a fairy from the warm seasons, Periwinkle was sure of it.

The green clad fairy stood motionless for a moment, paralyzed with as much shock and surprise as Periwinkle felt. Then the blonde fairy slowly removed her coat and revealed wings that glowed just like her own. The frost fairy gasped at this revelation. The two fairies flittered up into the air circling the other as they each inspected one another.

What struck Peri right away was just how much this blonde fairy looked like her. They were almost the spitting image of each other. Their facial features, eyes, nose, height and hair pulled up and back in much the same way. How could this be? Who was this person who shared her face?

Periwinkle didn't realize it just yet, but her life was about to change forever. Thanks to Dewey's histories she learned that this doppelgänger was more than just a lookalike. The green clad fairy who was named Tinker Bell was born from the same laugh. She was Periwinkle's twin sister. They not only shared the same face, but also the same soul. This was why their wings glowed, because the two girls were in such close proximity.

In that one moment Periwinkle understood why she felt some odd connection to the warm seasons of Pixie Hollow. She had a sister there. A sibling she never knew about but could feel in her heart nonetheless. An aching emptiness calling out to be filled by her other half. Now Tinker Bell was here and Periwinkle was determined to make up for lost time.

They were sisters, two people who shared a unique and unbreakable bond and no one was going to keep them apart ever again.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Hartley Winter's work van drove up mere minutes after Vidia had contacted him. He saw Claire alternately begging with and then yelling at Mr. Gold who stood there unmoved by her sobbing tirade. He walked to them and announced his presence. "What seems to be the problem here?"

"The problem? The problem is that this heartless crook is trying to steal my house," Claire shouted. She then turned back to Mr. Gold and began pleading again. "At least let me take clothing and personal effects. They have no value to you."

Nothing. Mr. Gold said absolutely nothing. He stood there watching as his men took an accounting of every object in and around Claire's home.

Hartley pulled Claire aside and asked why Gold was seizing her property. She nearly broke down into sobs when she had to confess to him that she overspent this month, leaving her short on her payment. "I only have half of what I need."

Claire knew from the moment she left the bank why she had been so careless with her money. She was feeling good. It seemed that whenever she let her guard down bad things happened. Dating Hartley was easing her stress and because of it she didn't feel the pressures of her tight budget. It wasn't his fault, though. She should have remained more vigilante about her expenditures.

"How much do you need to make your payment?" he asked sympathetically.

She sniffled and looked up at him with a pained expression. She was embarrassed to say it. "Five hundred dollars. My monthly payment is one thousand dollars and I've only collected half of it." Claire wanted to explain why without implicating Hartley, but Mr. Winter moved to confront the pawn broker before she could say another word.

"Now see here, Gold. Would it be so hard to accept five hundred dollars today and let Mrs. Kensington collect the rest of what she owes you?"

"No, it wouldn't," Gold replied.

"Well, I see you can be a reasonable man."

"But I'm not going to do it," Gold answered. "You see I have a business to run and if I let just one person slide on her monthly payment then I have to let everyone do the same." Mr. Gold then walked away from Hartley Winter and stood directly in front of Mrs. Kensington looking her straight in eyes. "And if a certain someone wasn't so lax in her own collections she might be able to make her own monthly payments instead of losing her house."

"How dare you," Claire hissed. She came within an inch of slapping him. "I would never let someone slide on what they owe me."

"Then we are in agreement," Gold said calmly. "The house is mine."

Claire's heart just sunk. She realized too late just how easily she had been manipulated into her answer.

"That is uncalled for," Hartley admonished.

"Oh, but is called for, my dear Mr. Winter," the pawn broker replied. "You operate a business. You know precisely of what I'm speaking. If you would not allow others to fail to pay their debts in a timely manner then you would be a hypocrite to ask the same of me. Good day to you both."

Claire began to tear up again.

Hartley was indignant towards Mr. Gold. Not only had the pawn broker used his famously wicked tongue to effectively defend his position, but he had maneuvered both Claire and himself to do the dirty work for him. If he could have his way Hartley would punch Mr. Gold right in the nose, but that would do nothing to alleviate Claire's difficult situation. Instead, he swallowed his pride and offered up a business proposition to the man.

"What if I offered to cover her payment for this month?" he asked him.

"Now why would you want to do that?" Gold asked him.

"Do you really care as long as you get paid?" Hartley answered, expertly deflecting his question.

"I suppose you're right. I will agree to your terms and return possession of the house to Mrs. Kensington if you make payment by the end of business today," Mr. Gold informed Hartley Winter.

Hartley went to his vehicle and withdrew his business checkbook. He wrote out a check for the full amount of one thousand dollars payable to Mr. Gold's pawn shop. He signed it, tore it from the book and handed it over to the still impassive businessman.

"Here is your thirty pieces of silver," Hartley said, his tone dripping with contempt.

Gold took the check from the Mr. Winter and recalled his staff. The sign from the door was pulled down and everything was replaced to its proper order. With his men were gone Mr. Gold "thanked" Hartley for the payment by saying, "I do hope this doesn't become a habit."

Hartley Winter could feel the insinuation hiding under Mr. Gold's words. Or perhaps he was only imagining it. Either way it took all of his self-control to keep from decking the man and send him sprawling to the concrete.

"Thank you, Hartley. I will pay you back every cent," Claire said as Gold drove away in his Lincoln Town Car.

He smiled. Claire was safe and that was all that mattered to him. "Think nothing of it. Consider it a gift. Just as this is." Winter reached into his pocket and removed a long, felt covered jewelry box. He opened it and removed a necklace. He strung it around her lovely neck and closed the clasp together. "I was going to save it for tonight, but this seems as good a time as any."

Claire looked down at it saw that at the end of the chain were a pair of stars almost side by side with one slightly higher and larger than the other. They were decorated out in diamonds with a larger gemstone at the center of each star. She gasped. "Oh this is too much, I can't accept it."

"It's yours," he said with a smile. "Do you remember the tales of Peter Pan?"

"Yes?"

"And do you remember the directions to Never Land he gave to Wendy?"

"The second star to the right and straight on till morning." Claire glanced at the two stars on the chain. That's what it was. The second star to the right, the way to Never Land.

Hartley smiled even more broadly. "Nothing ever aged on Never Land. This is a symbol of your ageless beauty which time can never steal away."

Claire began to cry again, only this time they were happy tears. "Thank you."

"Anything for you, my dearest love."

 **~O~**

Vidia turned away when the two began to kiss. She went inside the house ostensibly to check on their personal items. The truth was that the physical and emotional turmoil of this morning had left her feeling drained. She sprawled out on the coach and before she knew it Vidia was asleep. Her nap lasted less than an hour, but during that time she had a rather vivid dream. One which suddenly changed her perspective on current events.

When she woke up she grabbed her cell phone and dialed up Henry Mills the mayor's son. He was still in school, but she left a message for him. "Henry, this is Vidia. Call me back when you see get this message. I need to see your book again. It's important."

Vidia wasn't certain, but if the book corroborated her theory then she had just figured out something. Something so important that she couldn't stand idly by and not act upon it.

* * *

 **Oooh, so what was it that Vidia figured out? Sorry, you'll have to wait until later in the "episode" to find out. Thanks for reading.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **A Disney Fairies / Once Upon A Time Crossover**  
 **Season 1, Episode 14, Chapter 5**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

"She's just gone?" David Nolan asked.

"You really don't know," Sheriff Swan surmised. David Nolan received word that his wife's car had been found abandoned on the side of the road with the key in the ignition and the engine still running. As soon as he heard that Kathryn was nowhere to be found he drove out to the city limits and was immediately confronted by Sheriff Swan. Sydney Glass was there, too, but he excused himself to help Emma with her investigation. "When was the last time you spoke to your wife," Emma asked of David.

David talked to her the day before yesterday. They never spoke again once he ended things with her. Emma knew that there were lies and some deceit because of how matters shook out between him and Mary Margaret. When she asked him pointedly if knew anything about Kathryn's whereabouts he answered in the negative. Sheriff Swan, who was good at reading when people were lying, determined he was telling the truth.

All David remembered was coming home yesterday to find all of her personal effects missing. "I assumed she went to Boston. Am I suspect or something?"

"No," Swan explained. Kathryn hadn't been gone for twenty four hours yet and therefore was not technically considered a missing person. "If she is missing," Emma said reassuringly, "I will find her."

 **~O~**

Mary Margaret was not pleased with Leroy. He had made a promise to the nun's she knew he couldn't keep. He guaranteed to sell every single candle before the Miner's Day celebration ended. That meant selling out by tonight. She just hoped that Astrid and the other nun's didn't take what he had to say to heart otherwise they would be sorely disappointed.

 **~O~**

When Vidia woke from her dream she immediately called up Henry and left him a message. Her dream wasn't magical or miraculous in nature. In fact, it was as dull and mundane as most any other she had while in Storybrooke. They were simply random memories involving Regina, Mr. Gold, Claire, and a few other people she had met while in Storybrooke, though they were a bit disjointed and distorted as dreams often are.

It has been said that dreams help us make sense of our world. It is our brain processing what has happened as we sleep. If that is the case then Vidia was merely processing and making sense of the events of the day. But when she woke up one memory in particular stood out from all the rest because it was so peculiar. In fact, Vidia couldn't understand why she hadn't seen just how peculiar it was until now. That was why she called up Henry, because suddenly something in her mind clicked as if a piece of a puzzle had fallen into place. She had made a connection and formed a theory that required Henry's book of fairy tales to confirm. Vidia felt a little like a detective and for the first time since Henry showed her that same book did Vidia feel empowered and with a clear sense of direction and purpose.

She hung up the phone only for it to chirp informing her that a message was waiting. She checked her own voice mail. "Sweetie, this is Mom. You were so tired earlier I couldn't wake you up. When you get this message come to the Town Hall. I've set up our booth here at the Miner's Day Festival and I'm going to need your help. See you soon. Bye, honey."

Vidia sighed. The puzzle would have to wait. Mom needed her. "I wonder if this is what Henry has to go through with his own mother. Err…, mothers. Whatever."

 **~O~**

The Miner's Day Celebration was an all-day affair for the town of Storybrooke. Once the nun's and volunteers had finished setting up, the vendors began the festivities in earnest. Their booths ranged from games of chance or skill to wares being sold to delicious foods of the savory and sweet varieties being offered up to a hungry crowd. This was where Mary Margaret and Leroy were trying to offer the candles made by the convent.

"Buy your Miner's Day Candles made by our very own nuns," Mary Margaret announced like a sideshow barker. "Light your way to a good cause. Buy… buy… b-."

Mary Margaret stopped yelling. Every person who walked by gave her the dirtiest of looks and turned away from her and Leroy. Children were ushered from their presence and husbands were not allowed within ten feet of their booth. It was like they were lepers. "This isn't working," she lamented.

Leroy contemplated what to do next. "Let's close up shop," he told her.

"Now you're just giving up."

"If the customers won't come to us we need to go to them."

Mary Margaret hated the idea. If the customers weren't buying candles here at their booth then they certainly wouldn't put up with the two at their doorstep. But this was exactly Leroy's plan. He hoped people would buy the candles just to make the hated pair go away.

With no better course of action of her own Mary Margaret agreed with Leroy's proposal. They started packing up their boxes of candles when Mary Margaret noticed Claire trying to set up her own booth. She had arrived a bit late and was rushing to organize her display. Like the Christmas Festival booth, Claire was giving away a few promotional items to help drum up more business. These included refrigerator magnets, keychains, pens and pencils, wallet sized calendars and washcloths that had been crumpled up into perfect little cubes. The middle aged mother was out of breath when she finally opened up a seventeen inch laptop which played an endless loop of a video presentation.

"Kensington Contractors," the video relayed though the laptops tinny speakers, "a trusted institution in Storybrooke for twenty eight years."

 **~O~**

Sydney was playing a game of ring toss when Emma appeared. She explained to him that David had made no contact with Kathryn the day she disappeared. Just then Mary Margaret and Leroy interrupted them. The schoolteacher wanted to know how to use her winter attire to look the most desperate. Emma gave her a suggestion and Ms. Blanchard hustled off to sell their candles.

Mr. Glass eyed the woman with suspicion. If there was anyone in Storybrooke with a motive against Kathryn Nolan it was her. Emma Swan shot him down immediately. She knew Mary Margaret far too well to believe she was capable of doing such a thing.

Sydney protested that perhaps Emma was close to Ms. Blanchard to be objective, but Emma put a stop to his argument right there. She could be objective in the matter and Emma wasn't going to cover for her roommate.

And that was that.

 **~O~**

It wasn't long afterward that Sydney's "contact" phoned him with Kathryn Nolan's phone records. He did indeed have a way of expediting what Emma Swan needed, but it wasn't from within the phone company. His contact was the mayor. Regina took the records from her printer and looked them over. Not only was her plan coming along nicely, but there was something in Mrs. Nolan's phone records that was just too delicious to ignore. "Sydney, I have what you wanted. And I think you'll find it quite helpful."

* * *

 **~O~**

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

Dreamy and the other dwarfs were at a local tavern. They were all enjoying the food, drink and music, but not him. Bossy sat across the heavy wooden table and inquired as to why Dreamy wasn't enjoying himself. The sad looking dwarf didn't know what was wrong with him.

"Maybe I should have Doc check me out," Dreamy suggested.

"You want to trust a dwarf who got his medical degree from a pick-axe?"

Then a female voice piped up and told him what was really wrong. "You're in love." The woman was an attractive young female with dark hair and a blue dress. Although they didn't know her name she was Belle and was now on her own after having been chased from her "employment" at Rumpelstiltskin's Dark Castle.

Bossy only laughed. Dwarfs don't fall in love. But it was clear that Dreamy was. She explained that it could make a person feel wonderful, but Dreamy felt empty. "You need to be close to the one you love," she explained.

"Well, I don't even know if she loves me back," Dreamy answered meekly. "All she talked about was going to see some fireflies on a hill."

Belle laughed. "She wasn't telling you about the fireflies, she was inviting you to go with her."

"Really?"

"Yes, really. I should know. I've been in love enough to know when someone is in it. Take your chances, Dreamy, because you never know when it will end."

Despite Bossy's protests otherwise, Dreamy decided to take Belle's advice and take a chance. He was going to meet Nova at Firefly Hill this evening.

* * *

 **~O~**

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND (The Early Edwardian Era)

SPLOOSH! Vidia was suddenly wet. On a clear summer day she was hit on her head by water. On the ground lay the torn remains of a water balloon made from the thinnest blades of grass. From above she could hear giggling. She narrowed her eyes and grumbled knowingly. "Them."

Ever since Tink and Peri found each other they had spent quite a bit of time together on both sides of border. Clank and Bobble had invented a special coat for Periwinkle with huge pockets inside which could hold sheets of ice or mounds of frost. Whenever the ice melted Periwinkle could just replenish the pockets with frost to keep herself cold in the warmer climates.

At first everyone was excited about the new invention. It meant more of the frost fairies could cross over into the warm side individually. No one needed a huge snow maker being pulled around behind them to visit. But in the hands of these two sisters it became less of a blessing and more of a means to commit untold, nonstop mischief.

Vidia tried to fly up to where Tink and Peri were perched among the leaves and branches but her wings were now to wet for her to fly. "I'll get you for this!" she screamed. "When my wings dry out I'm going to wring your scrawny little necks. Do you hear me? Well? Do you?"

SPLOOSH! Her tirade was met with another water balloon.

"NOT FUNNY!"

"Then why are we laughing so hard?" Peri shrieked with laughter.

"UGH!" Vidia was so mad. The water had run down her clothing and into her shoes. She hated wet shoes, it made her feet chafe. She finally decided that those two weren't worth it. She stormed off mad as hell and hot under the collar.

SPLOOSH!

"DON'T YOU TWO HAVE SOMEONE ELSE YOU CAN TORMENT?"

"Yes, but they aren't as much fun as you," Tinker Bell squealed with delight.

That was enough. Vidia scrambled up the tree towards the girls. When they saw her coming Tink and Peri only laughed harder.

"Uh oh. She's mad now," Peri said, giggling.

"Better get going," Tink replied, snickering.

"Thar she blows," they said together as Vidia clawed her way to their hiding spot.

SPLOOSH! She was hit with another balloon. "That's it! You are so dead!" Vidia chased after the two sisters who stayed one step ahead of her, giggling and tossing their supply of water balloons at her one at a time. They led Vidia through the branches of the tree and then onto a path that wended its way through Springtime Square and the Summer Gardens.

When the two girls ran out of ammunition they flew off making their heading towards the Winter Woods. Vidia, who was still grounded, was soaked to the bone and sopping wet. Infuriated with the two sisters she screamed her lungs out.

"Vidia, what is the matter?" a voice asked. The fast flyer whirled around and saw that Queen Clarion was hovering before her. "Dear, you are soaking wet," the regent pointed out.

"Brilliant deduction," she sneered.

Clarion wasn't amused by Vidia's response, but judging by her appearance she had a reason for being this irate. "What has happened to you?"

"Tinker Bell and Periwinkle!" she growled.

"Oh, I see," the queen said quietly. "Carry on."

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Vidia was driving the minivan towards Town Square when she spotted Mary Margaret Blanchard and Leroy walking away from a house. She remembered that Ms. Blanchard was looking for volunteers this morning to sell candles for Miner's Day. Vidia pulled over to see how they were doing.

"Oh, hi, Valerie," the schoolteacher greeted. She looked on the edge of despair. "We've been trying to sell these candles for the nun's but no one is buying from us."

"No one wants to help the nuns?" Vidia asked.

"We're the two most hated people in town," Ms. Blanchard clarified. "They don't care who we're trying to help, one look and they shut us out."

"We could be selling water in the desert and they'd still turn us down," Leroy added.

Ms. Blanchard and Leroy explained that for more than an hour they had been trying to sell candles door to door in different neighborhoods after having no luck at the festival. Every person who answered the door would just turn them away with dirty looks, contemptuous comments and lots of door slamming.

The closest they came to getting any kind of positive response occurred at one of the first houses they visited. They were greeted by an older gentleman who was tall and slender. He was nibbling on a carrot suggestively while leering at Mary Margaret. His wife, a short and stout woman, walked up to the door and sneered at them before pulling her husband from the door and shutting it harshly.

"We haven't sold a single candle so far," Ms. Blanchard told Vidia.

"Yeah, at this rate the nun's won't make rent and Mr. Gold will kick them out of their convent," Leroy added.

"I know what that's like," Vidia muttered. "He tried to take our house this morning. Hey, I have an idea. Let me sell the candles for you."

Mary Margaret's eyes lit up. She nearly tripped over herself shoving a box of the candles into Vidia's arms. "Now remember, tell them these are to help the nun's and that they are five dollars each. Now here is your greeting and sales speech. Always remember to make eye contact and make sure to smile and say thank you."

"Got it."

Vidia went to the next house and rang the doorbell. Mary Margaret and Leroy hid behind the minivan and waited eagerly for the outcome. If Valerie succeeded then it might turn around their bad luck. Ms. Blanchard even went so far as to cross her fingers for a little extra good fortune.

Vidia waited patiently until a nice woman in her late thirties or early forties answered the front door. She immediately went into her sales speech. "Hi, I'm selling candles made by our very own nuns. All proceeds benefit the convent, a pillar of our community for more than a hundred years. Light your way to a good cause."

The woman, a housewife who was dressed in a house coat and apron, beamed with appreciation. "Oh is it Miner's Day already? Of course I'll help the nuns. How much are they, dear?"

"Five dollars each," Vidia answered, holding up one of the beefy, white candles for show.

"I'll take two." The woman took a pair of five dollar bills from her apron and handed them to Vidia who presented her with a two of the large candles. "Oh these will make for great candle light dinners with my husband," she said. "Thank you."

"Thank you," Vidia said smiling appreciatively. "And the nuns of Storybrooke thank you, too."

Mary Margaret and Leroy were ecstatic. Vidia was a natural. She sold two candles at her first house without any convincing or hard sales tactics.

"You were wonderful," Ms. Blanchard gushed. They met Vidia at the curb, coming out from their hiding place once the front door to the house was closed.

"We're going to make it after all," Leroy said, a smile on his face.

A second later the front door to that same house opened and the housewife came running out with candles in hand. She shoved them back into Leroy's arms and swiped the two fives back from Ms. Blanchard. With a scowl on her face the housewife disparaged both of them. "How dare you use this poor, little mixed up girl to do your dirty work. You should be ashamed of yourselves."

The housewife then turned to Vidia and said, "Stay away from these two or you'll end up drunk and chasing married men." She glared at Leroy and Mary Margaret before storming back into the house, slamming the door behind her.

Vidia turned to look at Ms. Blanchard and Leroy with a "what just happened?" look on her face.

Ms. Blanchard just sighed. Her shoulders slumped and she shook her head in defeat. "I'm sorry, Valerie. I guess we're just too toxic. Thanks for trying."

Vidia didn't want to give up on them just yet, but at that moment her cell phone rang. Claire was calling to make sure she was coming to join her at the Festival. She groaned. "I need to go. My mother needs my help at the Town Square."

"Maybe its best this way, Valerie," Mary Margaret said to her. "We'll be okay. Go help your mother."

Vidia climbed back into the minivan and continued on her way to the festival. Leroy looked at Ms. Blanchard and asked her what they should do next.

"We go back to the convent and give them the bad news," she said.

"Let me do it," he said. "I'm the one who made the promise, I'll should be the one to break it to Astrid."


	10. Chapter 10

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **A Disney Fairies / Once Upon A Time Crossover**  
 **Season 1, Episode 14, Chapter 6**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Leroy and Mary Margaret Blanchard returned to the convent and school utterly defeated. Not one person was willing to buy candles from them today. Even the two Valerie Kensington sold were returned as soon as the buyer realized the girl was selling on their behalf. And now Leroy was going to have to renege on his promise to Astrid.

"Sister Astrid," he said looking terribly uncomfortable. "I've got bad news." Leroy tried to tell her what happened, but one look into those poor, trusting eyes and he blurted out something completely different. "The bad news is… is that the nuns are going to have make a whole lot of candles because Mary Margaret and I just sold them all."

Astrid was stunned by this news. So was Ms. Blanchard, but for totally different reasons. How could he tell her such a thing? They had no money, no prospects and no hope. As she berated Leroy and heard his response something became crystal clear to her. "Oh my God you're in love with her. Leroy, she's a nun. Could you pick someone more unavailable?"

"Says the woman who went after a married guy," he rebuked. If Leroy couldn't sell candles then he was going to raise the money another way. He simply couldn't break poor Astrid's heart. To that end, he picked up a phone and dialed for the pawn shop. "Mr. Gold? I have something I want to sell. Could you meet me at the docks this afternoon?"

 **~O~**

Outside at the Miner's Day Festival Vidia found herself walking the square wearing a sandwich board sign. She carried it on her shoulders while handing out flyers. It was degrading, but if Claire was going to avoid another near disaster like this morning she was going to have to put aside her pride and do what was necessary to keep the only home she had in Storybrooke safely in their possession.

* * *

 **~O~**

THE WINTER WOODS, NEVER LAND (The Early Edwardian Era)

BFFF!

"AAAAIIIEEEEE! Look what you did to my hair!" Rosetta screeched.

Tinker Bell and Periwinkle doubled over with laugher from behind a snow bank they used as a defensive position. After nearly drowning Vidia with water balloons, the sisters came here and eventually decided to continue their reign of mischief by pelting passersby with snowballs.

The two girls had positioned themselves across from what had become dubbed "Lover's Lane," a normally quiet path that overlooked the Winter Woods with a gorgeous panorama of snowcapped mountains, lush forests and a perfect view of the sunset every evening. With the Winter Woods now opened up more and more fairies and sparrow men began pairing off.

Rosetta was dating Sled exclusively, Bobble and Gliss were often seen together, Buck was trying to get Fawn to take an interest in him, while Iridessa had become friends with Stump with an eye towards maybe something more. Most days couples would make use of this pathway to take a romantic stroll or just sit and watch the sun go down. Today it was target practice for the terror twins.

The red headed garden fairy had been pelted in the back of her head by one of Periwinkle's accurate throws. As soon as she started screaming in their direction Tinker Bell nailed her in the face with another. Rosetta became so outraged that leapt into the air to strangle them. Sled had to take her bodily and hold her back while the hot headed garden fairy flailed her arms and legs threateningly at her two assailants.

"Come on, Ro," Sled pleaded with her. "Don't let them spoil our time together."

"Okay, fine. But the next time I see either of you miscreants I'm going to make you pay for this!" she screamed at Tink and Peri.

Oh what fun this was for the twin girls. Tinker Bell and Periwinkle sat and waited for their next victim. They knew that it could take a while, but they were surprised when only a few minutes later they could hear voices approaching. With wicked smiles on their faces they readied more snowballs. The voices were familiar, but they all were. However, Tink and Peri were having so much fun that they failed to notice just who those voices belonged to. Once their targets were in the "kill zone" the two reared up and let loose a pair of snowballs.

BFFF!

BFFF!

They ducked behind their protective snowbank giggling like little kids when they heard those familiar voices calling to them.

"Girls!"

"Periwinkle."

"Show yourselves!"

They gasped. "Is that who I think it is?" Tink croaked.

Periwinkle peered over the top of the snow bank. When she identified them she ducked down with a look of stark horror. "It is! Queen Clarion and Lord Milori."

"Girls! Now!" the queen summoned.

"Eep!"

"You can say that again!" Peri whispered to an equally frightened Tinker Bell.

The two sisters, realizing they couldn't avoid this any longer slowly stood up to face the music.

"Come here," Milori ordered.

Slowly the two glided to the presence of their respective regents. The queen shook her head in disapproval. Lord Milori looked most cross with them. His shirt was covered with the snowball one of them tossed.

"We're sorry!" Peri began.

"We didn't mean to hit you with snowballs," Tink added.

"Yeah, we thought you were someone else."

Tinker Bell glared at Periwinkle for saying that last line.

The queen raised her hand and silenced the girls.

"I hear you have been antagonizing your fellow fairies with water balloons and snowballs among other things," the queen admonished. "At first I assumed it was a simple prank, but I can see you two are determined to make as much mischief as possible for as long as it entertains you."

"This is not why we opened the borders," Milori continued. "We rejoined Pixie Hollow so that fairies of all seasons could once again come together in the spirit of friendship and fraternity, not to harass one another with mean spirited childishness."

Both Tinker Bell and Periwinkle lowered their heads in shame.

"What you two have done is most unbecoming," the queen began again. "Crossing the border is as much a privilege as it is a right. We must all act with restraint and decorum with an eye towards the greater community."

"Queen Clarion and I had hoped you two would have known better," Milori finished.

"We're sorry, Your Highnesses," Tinker Bell whimpered.

"Yeah, we've learned our lessons," Periwinkle said, barely able to get the words out. "We'll never do this again."

"That's good to hear," Milori replied.

Queen Clarion then handed down their punishment. They were to visit each person they harassed and apologize to them. Tinker Bell and Periwinkle agreed.

"Now then, go attend to your duty," the queen told them gently.

Tink and Peri bowed to their rulers and then walked away feeling great relief that the consequences of their actions weren't any more severe. They were certain they would end up separated for a time or forced to do hard labor. "We got off lucky," Tink whispered.

BFFF! BFFF!

BFFF! BFFF! BFFF!

BFFF!

BFFF! BFFF!

The two girls were riddled with a hail of snowballs from behind. They turned to each other, stunned that Queen Clarion and Lord Milori would do such a thing. When they looked back at the two regents neither gave any indication that either had thrown a single snowball.

"Get going," the queen told them with a straight face. "Don't you have something to do?"

Tinker Bell and Periwinkle grinned from ear to ear believing that perhaps the two regents weren't so above it all. As it turned out Spike, one of their victims, had caught them unawares and took a bit of well-earned revenge upon them. Clarion and Milori said or did nothing to Spike as the two wanted Tink and Peri to learn what if felt like to be assaulted in such a way. Once they learned the truth, neither was happy with what Spike did to them.

"I guess we learned our lesson after all," Peri sighed to Tinker Bell.

"Yeah, now I really do feel bad for what we did to everyone."

"Let's go," Periwinkle said, "we have a lot of apologizing to do."

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Most of her handouts were gone and Vidia decided to make her way back to Claire's booth at the Festival so she could take off this sandwich board which was now hurting her shoulders. Diligently she kept handing out the trifold pamphlets and explaining all the work that her mother's company did. More than a few people wrote their names on a signup sheet that was clipped to the sandwich board she carried.

Vidia was a bit surprised that nearly half the sheet was full of names, though at least one or two persons wrote in joke names like Seymour Butts and Mickey Mouse. The others, however, were all legitimate prospects. _Hopefully this will keep the house out of Mr. Gold's hands for another month._ She couldn't see Mr. Winter paying for another month no matter how much he was in love with Claire.

Moments later she saw a booth that seemed comically out of place. The booth was for the local ice cream shop Any Given Sundae. Here it was late February, the weather outside was cold, there was snow on the ground and someone was trying to sell ice cream. What was most surprising was that people were actually buying.

Vidia was about to walk passed without another thought when she heard a familiar voice, one that made her stop and take a second look. _It can't be._

"What am I saying, after everything I've seen so far anyone from back home could be here," she told herself. Vidia carefully nudged her way closer to the booth and managed to get a good look at the two girls who were manning the booth. It was Spike and Gliss. She couldn't believe it. They were here, too.

Gliss was as perky and energetic as ever. Her boundless energy, goofy smile and twenty something good looks attracted more than her share of male admirers. Vidia just rolled her eyes. "Boys. They're all the same no matter where they live."

Spike was just as she remembered: snarky, a bit lazy and often vexed by everything that Gliss did. Part of Vidia wanted to feel victorious for finding more of her kind here in Storybrooke. But if they were here then they had forgotten who they used to be and were living lives that were not their own. Not a particularly good reason to feel like celebrating.

Vidia returned to Claire's booth as soon as all of her flyers were gone. "Can I take this thing off now? My shoulders hurt."

"Yes, of course, dear," Claire told her. "Just leave it right out in front of the booth."

Vidia noticed that Hartley Winter had joined Claire at the booth, having offered to assist her. He handed the girl some money and told her to go out and enjoy herself a bit. "You've earned it," he said.

She got the feeling they wanted her out of the way so they could be alone for a while longer. That suited her just fine. If they were going to act like they did early this morning, Vidia had no desire to sit and watch.

* * *

 **~O~**

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

"I thought you weren't going to make it," Nova the fairy said as Dreamy bounded up the hill.

"I wouldn't miss it." Dreamy and Nova stood atop Firefly Hill. From here they saw the town below. This was a seaside community where boats docked with wares from other lands and fishermen brought in their catch. The sun had just gone down and the crimson colors of the horizon were fading away to a starry filled night.

Dreamy saw all the lights below. "Are those the fireflies?" he asked her.

Nova laughed. "No, those are the lights from the town."

He was impressed. He had never seen anything like this. Suddenly Dreamy got the idea that they should run away together. Dreamy talked about taking a boat and sailing around the world visiting the different kingdoms and countries. Both would be able to do what they had spoken about earlier. Nova only saw the world from high above while Dreamy spent nearly his entire life in the mines surrounded by other dwarfs. The pair had wanted to see and do more than their respective jobs allowed.

They each stared into each other's eyes realizing just how much they shared in common and confessed their love for each other. Seconds later the fireflies came out and lit up the night sky. Both were taken aback by the awe inspiring beauty of the fireflies. The two decided to come back here tomorrow night and begin their new lives together. To begin a journey filled with joyous wonder and discovery.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Sydney Glass returned from his "contact at the phone company" with some disturbing news. "David lied," he told Emma flatly. The phone records indicated that he had indeed phoned Kathryn yesterday afternoon just hours before she vanished. It was some very damning evidence, but Emma refused to accept it. Swan put very little faith in anything except her so called superpower. Her ability to tell when someone was lying. She got no sense from David that he was. During her most recent interview of him she determined that people who were trying to cover up something usually had better answers than he had given her. This was why she rejected the report and considered other possibilities.

Sydney, however, thought that Emma was too close to the situation to be objective. An opinion he kept to himself, but was nonetheless rather sure of. Emma was roommates with Mary Margaret Blanchard, the same woman who was in love with David Nolan. Perhaps Sheriff Swan was blind to the evidence before her because of her connections to the very people involved. Until Sheriff Swan could be held accountable, he believed, this investigation was going nowhere. Later that day he confided as much in the person who provided his evidence: Mayor Regina Mills.

* * *

 **I hope everyone is enjoying the story so far. Thanks for reading.**


	11. Chapter 11

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **A Disney Fairies / Once Upon A Time Crossover**  
 **Season 1, Episode 14, Chapter 7**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

As soon as school let out Tina went to the curb to look for her mother's vehicle. Instead she spotted Penny on her scooter. Penny was confused by the earlier conversation this morning and needed some clarification.

"C'mon, let's go to my place," she invited. Tina, happy to spend time with her friend, hopped on.

They chatted on the ride. "So you're not pregnant?" Penny asked of her friend.

"No."

"Then the test was negative?"

"It was a mistake."

"What?!"

"A mistake."

"You mean it didn't work?"

"Yeah, pretty much. It read positive, but that can't be right."

Penny was so floored by this admission that she had to pull over in the nearest parking lot and turned to face her best friend. "What do you mean it couldn't be right?"

"It was a mistake. I mean right there on the label it says it isn't one hundred percent accurate."

"Wait, when was the last time you had your period?" Penny asked suspiciously.

"I don't know. A month maybe two months."

"Tina. When was the last time you had a period?" Penny reiterated with greater firmness to her voice.

"Okay not long after I had slept with Clarence," Tina finally admitted. "What's the big deal?"

"The big deal? The big deal is you could be pregnant."

"No… I'm… not," Tina insisted.

It dawned on Penny that Tina was in denial. The reality of the situation may have been too much for her to handle and she simply refused to accept what was happening to her.

"So, if it gave you an incorrect answer would you be willing to try it again?"

"I don't see why I should," Tina replied. "It's only going to be wrong again."

Extreme denial.

 **~O~**

Vidia had spent most of her time away from the booth during the early hours of the festival. First as a walking advertisement and then simply to enjoy herself. She went directly to the ice cream stand to speak with Spike and Gliss. She learned that Spike's name was Michelle, though she went by Mike, and Gliss was named Tess in this world. They worked for the ice cream shop on Main Street for a middle aged blonde woman who seemed to know more about ice cream and frozen stuff than anyone else they knew.

Surprisingly, Tess seemed to recognize Vidia. "Do you know who I am?" she asked the excitable blonde girl.

"Sure, you were in all the papers around Thanksgiving," Tess answered. "You're the girl who can't remember who she really is. What's that like anyway?"

There was a stunning irony in that statement. Vidia knew that it was Gliss and Spike and everyone else in this town who couldn't remember who they were. They were all brought here by a curse that kept them from recalling who they really were. Yet there was some truth to what Tess stated. Vidia could not remember who she was while living under that curse with the exception of one lone memory.

Henry had explained to her once that the savior was consistently weakening the curse and that like Emma Swan, Vidia had to be around her own people if she was going to help save them from Regina's dark machinations. As the only one who had been able to break free it was up to her to protect the fairies of Pixie Hollow. It was an awful lot to put on her shoulders, but thus far Vidia had been able to bear that responsibility with aplomb.

 **~O~**

Claire checked her watch and realized that it was three in the afternoon and Tina would be waiting for her at the school. She called up Vidia on her cell phone as asked her to pick up the girl. "Oh, and make sure to be here by four thirty," Claire added. "I've signed us up for a first aid and CPR class. You and Tina should be certified."

Hartley had agreed to remain at the booth while Claire and the girls went to this class. Vidia had no idea what CPR was but figured she would find out soon enough. When Vidia called up Tina to let her know that she was on her way to pick her up, her sister informed her that she was at Penny's house. "Great, I'll pick you up there."

* * *

 **~O~**

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

Dreamy was trying to sneak out of the hovel where he and his brothers slept. He was as quiet as a mouse, but Stealthy caught him anyway. "If you need help you should have come to me," Stealthy told him.

All of his brother dwarfs woke up. They tried to understand why he was leaving them. "I'm in love," he told them. Dreamy was going to start a new life with Nova. While the others were sad to see him leave they were also happy that Dreamy was doing what made him happy. Sneezy offered Dreamy his axe, but the dwarf politely refused it. "Where I'm going I won't need it."

In turn each of the seven other dwarfs hugged Dreamy goodbye before he left, bidding him well on his new adventure.

Dreamy crept out of the mines and was starting his way towards Firefly Hill when Bossy emerged. "What are you doing, Dreamy?" he asked. Again, Dreamy stated that he was in love and that he was going to meet up with the woman of his dreams.

"Dreamy, dwarfs don't fall in love," Bossy repeated. "If you leave now you'll be miserable."

"Bossy's right, young one," a kind, female voice said. Dreamy turned around and came face to face with The Blue Fairy, Nova's teacher. She informed him that if Nova were to leave with him her life would be a sorrowful one. "Nova is special fairy and can be a great Fairy Godmother someday," Blue stated. "But that won't happen if she leave with you."

"But we're in love," Dreamy said again with joyful emphasis.

"No, young one. What you have is only a dream. When a fairy falls in love her wings fall off and she can never achieve her true purpose. Nova is destined for great things, Dreamy. If you let her follow that path both of you will be able to bring untold happiness to millions of others. But this cannot happen if you run away together."

Dreamy didn't want to admit it, but The Blue Fairy was right. He remembered first meeting Nova. She stated that her greatest desire was to become a fairy godmother. If he took her away from that life she would be heartbroken. Dreamy hated himself. He loved Nova so much, but if loving her meant giving her up so she could make her real dreams come true, then that was the price he would pay for her happiness and the happiness of others.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

"There, you see," Tina said showing Penny the test. "It's wrong."

Penny was flabbergasted. She had convinced Tina to take another pregnancy test. She even went so far as to buy it herself and she used a phony driver's license as proof of age. Penny's forgeries were always top notch, though she preferred to use them sparingly. This was partly because the liked the people here in Storybrooke and didn't like taking advantage of them except when necessary. Also, if the Sheriff ever found out the list of charges against her would be short.

"It's wrong? Because the test returned a positive?"

"Yes, exactly."

She couldn't believe it. Tina was so deep into denial that not even logic and empirical evidence was going to make her wake up to the reality of it all. Penny thought about telling her mother, but that might only make things worse. It could send Tina into a defensive position so strong nothing would convince her short of a sonogram or an actual baby. Penny thought it best for Tina to come to her senses and let her reveal this to Claire with as little conflict as possible.

 **~O~**

On the way to pick up Tina, Vidia made a quick detour to the elementary school that Henry attended. He was sitting on a bench in front of the building waiting for his mother to arrive.

"I got your message," he said the moment Henry saw her. "I've got the book."

"Great. I need to check something," she said, taking the large tome from him and flipping through the pages.

"Do you know what you're looking for?"

"I'm not sure," she answered. "This will help me gather more evidence, but I won't know until I can confront him directly."

"Who?" Henry asked, looking more than confused.

"Mr. Gold."

 **~O~**

Vidia arrived at the Pawn Shop just minutes before Mr. Gold was to go to the docks at the request of Leroy. The "custodial engineer" was offering up something for sale. Something he claimed would be worth Mr. Gold's time. Intrigued the pawn broker agreed to meet him there this afternoon.

She had never visited Mr. Gold's shop. Vidia had met him before while she was in jail and again during the courtroom drama that played out thanks to the mayor. And of course there was this morning when he tried to repossess the house where she lived. Her quick thinking saved her home and now she was here to confront him with a truth she had only today figured out.

"I'm rather busy," he said as she walked in the door, the little bell hanging overhead chiming. "I have an appointment to keep."

"Another house to foreclose?" she asked, a snippy lilt to her voice.

"Sadly, no," he replied with an equally sarcastic tone. "Consider yourself fortunate that Mr. Winter came to your aid. I doubt such windfalls will be forthcoming in our future dealings, dearie. Perhaps you should sheath that sharp tongue of yours or I will be far less merciful next time I come."

This was her opening. "I like my tongue just the way it is," she answered back. "And it's of words I wish to speak to you about. Specifically, a few you spoke to me three months ago when Regina tried to have me convicted."

"Yes, I do remember," he said recalling the event. "You were behind bars then. Now it seems I'm the one behind something. My counter to be exact. Not really a turning of the tables, is it."

He was toying with her. Vidia could tell. He had no respect for her. Mr. Gold was so used to being the most feared person in this town that he could easily dismiss or condescend to whomever tried to stand up to him. However, she wasn't one of his scared clients trying to screw up enough courage to meekly oppose the most powerful man in Storybrooke. Vidia was fearless even in the face of this man who could take away her home in the blink of an eye.

"You are going to be more forgiving of my mother from now on," she said directly.

"Oh, and why is that, may I ask?" he said with a touch of laughter.

"Because I know who you are," she stated.

"Of course, you do. I'm Mr. Gold, owner of this fine establishment and holder of the lien against your mother's house," he replied calmly. "A house, I should remind you, will likely end up in my possession by the end of next month."

"No, it won't," she replied.

Gold looked a bit exasperated with this child. "If this is why you've chosen to delay me then you may make prompt and proper use of my door. It's right behind you. I have somewhere to be."

Vidia stood her ground. She folded her arms and cocked a superior eyebrow at him. "You are going nowhere until I've had my say, sweetie."

"I hadn't realized were on such a familiar basis," he said, replying to her "sweetie" remark.

"I know who you really are," she stated again. "And you know who I really am. You've known since you came to visit me in jail. And you tipped your hand again in the courtroom."

"I'm quite certain I have no idea what you're talking about," Gold said, fully invested in defending his ignorance of what she said.

"Don't play dumb with me," she answered. "When you interviewed me in my jail cell you asked some very specific questions. These included the names of Queen Clarion's parents. And as soon as you got those names the interview ended. You acted as if those names were important to you. They had some kind of meaning. Those two fairies were never mentioned in the three movies shown in the courtroom. So the only way you could be aware of Queen Clarus and Prince Devin is if you had visited Pixie Hollow at some point in its history."

He smiled. "That's quite an active imagination you have there, dearie."

"It gets better," she answered him. "See how you like this? After the courts ruled in my favor you told me that this town just got a lot more interesting. You were clearly anticipating something. That proves you know I'm not Valerie Kensington of Storybrooke but Vidia the Fast Flyer from Pixie Hollow on Never Land Island. Up until today I've been at a disadvantage. Well now I've evened up the score. You see, I've read Henry's book. The residents of this town came from a place called The Enchanted Forest. Mary Margaret Blanchard is Snow White; David Nolan is Prince Charming; the mayor is The Evil Queen who cast the spell that brought everyone here; and you… I know precisely who you are."

"And who might that be, dearie?" he asked smugly.

"Rumpelstiltskin, the Dark One," she answered him calmly, but proud of her deductive skills.

Mr. Gold didn't speak or react for a beat or two. While he made no immediate attempt to rebut her findings that pause was more than enough to convince Vidia that she was right. Her conviction wasn't as strong inside as she made it appear outside. This confrontation was intended to confirm beyond a shadow of a doubt that her conclusions were correct. And no matter what he said next Vidia was certain she had achieved that goal.

It was only a second or two before he reacted to her accusation, but it seemed almost like an eternity to Vidia. Gold smiled at her and stepped around the counter to stand directly in front of her, his cane quietly thumping the floor with each labored step.

"If I remember the fairy tale correctly when someone correctly guesses his name Rumpelstiltskin would become angry and run away, never to be seen again," he answered her. "As you can see, I'm not angry nor will I go away and leave you or your mother alone. In fact, I predict you may be seeing more of me and quite soon."

Gold then strode towards the front of his property and held opened the door. "Now if you will excuse me, I have somewhere else to be at this moment. Good day, dearie. Please do come again. I found our conversation most… entertaining."

Vidia departed to pick up Tina. From his last statements to her she couldn't be certain if she had only made things worse for Claire. This wasn't the outcome Vidia had planned. She had at least expected some kind of reaction out of him. Instead, Gold was as cool as ice. Her belief that he was Rumpelstiltskin began to waiver on the drive to Penny's house. But the evidence she had collected thus far couldn't have been in error. Her confidence began to evaporate.

"How could I have been so wrong," she said, questioning herself.

 **~O~**

Mr. Gold locked up his store to pay his visit to Leroy at the docks. Gold's two staffers were at the Festival today, though he usually hired them on an as needed basis anyway. During the drive he smiled a bit to himself.

 _She has begun to figure it out_ , he thought. _Good. It shouldn't be too long to wait._

* * *

 **Thank you for reading. I do hope you have enjoyed this chapter. Feedback is always appreciated.**


	12. Chapter 12

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **A Disney Fairies / Once Upon A Time Crossover**  
 **Season 1, Episode 14, Chapter 8**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Vidia was uncertain if she had only made life more difficult for Claire, Tina and herself after leaving Mr. Gold's shop. She only knew that her assessment couldn't be wrong, but it apparently was. Gold did recognize the names of Queen Clarus and Prince Devin. He did claim that the town would now be more interesting with Vidia in it.

"He must be lying," she concluded. Vidia still was not completely certain that she was right and he was wrong, but the idea of Mr. Gold lying or otherwise obfuscating the truth was right in line with his characterization as Rumpelstiltskin in Henry's book and with who he was here.

When she picked up Tina, Penny asked to come along. "I would like to help at the Festival," she said. "I usually don't attend, but I would like to this year."

"Sure," Vidia answered. "We could use all the help we can get." On that score, she could be most certain.

 **~O~**

"Oh good, you made it back with time to spare," Claire gushed. Vidia and the other two girls showed up just after four. Claire was surprised to see Penny but was happy with her helping out. "Good you can stay with Hartley and watch the booth while we go to the CPR class."

Both Claire and Hartley took note of how Penny was dressed. She wore very little against the bitter February weather. While everyone else was buried in layers of warm sweaters and thick jackets Penny only wore a deep blue flannel shirt and ice blue hoodie jacket.

"Aren't you cold in just that," Hartley asked.

"No. Funny thing, the cold just doesn't bother me."

Claire grabbed her purse and offered Hartley a kiss on the cheek. Vidia noticed just how casual Claire and Hartley had become with their public displays of affection. It was almost as if they were a married couple who were comfortable in their displays of marital bliss. Vidia decided that this was going to be the new normal between them, at least for as long as they lived under the curse as Claire Kensington and Hartley Winter.

"Okay, girls, let's go," the mother called out, leading her two daughters towards the school. "As employees you need to be certified in first aid and CPR."

"What is CPR, anyway?" Vidia asked.

On the way over Tina explained that it meant Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation. "It's an emergency procedure that is performed when someone has a heart attack or stops breathing," she said.

"Dr. Whale is teaching the course," Claire added. "We'll be in good hands."

Tina then turned to Vidia and said, "Yeah, just be careful with Dr. Whale. I've heard he can be pretty horny."

Vidia was astounded. "He has horns? Where? And how does he hide them?"

"Uhhh…," was all Tina could muster as a reply.

* * *

 **~O~**

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

Dreamy met Nova atop Firefly Hill just as he had they night before. This time, his heart was heavy because he was about to break hers. Tonight was just like the evening before. A starry sky, shimmering lights from the town below and the fireflies performing their spectacular dance midflight. Before Dreamy could utter a word Nova presented him with a spyglass. Down in the waters was a boat. It was a small two person affair with a sail and enough provisions and supplies to visit the realms and travel around the world.

"Great," Dreamy said, sick to his stomach.

Nova was energized to begin their new life together. Dreamy couldn't let this go any further. "I can't go with you, Nova," Dreamy told her.

"Yes you can," she said, thinking he might be getting cold feet.

"No, we can't. I spoke to the Blue Fairy and-."

"What did she say? WHAT DID SHE SAY?!" Nova asked frantically. Once again it seemed as if her teacher was going to get in the way of her happiness. Dreamy tried to explain that they could both do more for the world separately, but Nova refused to listen.

"I belong in the mines," he told her.

"But we're in love," Nova pleaded, hoping to get Dreamy to admit it, as well.

"I'm a dwarf," he answered coldly. "I can't love." With those words he turned and walked away from her. Nova watched with feelings of shock and betrayal deep in her breast as the person she loved so much had turned her away so callously. How could Dreamy be so ruthless? How could The Blue Fairy be so horrible as to turn Dreamy against her? Nova's life felt as though it had ended before it ever had a chance to begin.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Leroy had spent his time offloading the many boxes of candles onto his boat. He couldn't allow Nova to see them because it would break her heart. He was her hero and Leroy didn't want to dispel that illusion as long as he still had a chance to make it a reality.

That possibility arrived when Mr. Gold drove up. Leroy's prized possession was his boat. A small two man affair with a sail and room enough for provisions to make a lengthy trip before needing to resupply. "Now I know it needs a little work and maybe a spritz of Febreeze here and there," Leroy said trying to sell the vessel to Mr. Gold, "but you can't tell me that this fine sailing ship isn't worth five thousand dollars."

"Three thousand I would think," Gold replied instantly.

"I need five," Leroy responded. He knew that pawn brokers always bought low so he tried to get Mr. Gold to increase his offer.

"And to what do we owe the specificity of this price?"

"Look, I'm not selling it for me," Leroy answered trying to bargain with the man. "Just forgive one month's rent for the nun's."

Mr. Gold's reaction stunned Leroy in its spiteful hate. "The nuns? I dislike having such distasteful residents and I look forward to removing them from my property."

Leroy could not believe what he was hearing. "Who doesn't like nuns?"

"Let's just say I have a rather unpleasant history with them and leave it at that." Gold ultimately refused Leroy's offer. With no other business to conduct the pawn broker excused himself and returned to his shop.

Despondent Leroy tried to think of something, anything, to raise that five thousand dollars. Moments later, Sister Astrid arrived. She had baked him a pie for saving the convent. Leroy tried to pull a tarp over the boxes of candles, but it was too little too late. Astrid spotted them.

"Leroy, if you sold all the candles then what are they doing here?" she asked.

Caught in his lie Leroy confessed that he misled her because he couldn't bear to tell her the truth. He was supposed to be her hero and he tried as hard as he could to live up to it. But no matter what he and Mary Margaret tried no one was willing to buy even a single candle from them. "I'm sorry, Astrid. I couldn't save you or the nuns."

It was a devastating blow that left the poor, young nun fraught with anxiety. Unless there was a miracle soon the order would be displaced, losing their convent and their school in the process. In all likelihood the diocese would relocate them to another town. Astrid now had to return to her sisters and break the awful news to them. Her "hero" was no hero at all.

* * *

 **~O~**

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND (The Late Victorian Era)

Apologizing to so many fairies and sparrow men took longer than anyone could have reasonably expected. In some cases Tinker Bell and Periwinkle had to stand and listen to furious individuals scream and yell their utter displeasure at what the pair did to them. Rosetta especially was most infuriated when they appeared at her door. Though the fiery redhead always considered Tink to be her friend, _no one_ touched her hair.

She spat every vile fairy curse she could at the sisters and declared she would take restitution upon them. Tink had to promise to build a device that kept squirrels from running through her garden. Periwinkle agreed not to frost any surviving flowers when the winter fairies brought winter to the mainland. They both agreed.

They were fortunate that Rosetta was the only one among those they visited who required something in return. Everyone else accepted their apologies at face value, particularly when they described the circumstances that led them to recant their previous actions.

And then there was Vidia. She was the last person they had to visit and the only other one the sisters truly dreaded. Tinker Bell knew that Vidia was her friend and would eventually calm down, yet Vidia could still be mean and extremely difficult to deal with when angry.

"Ready?" Tink asked her twin.

"No, can't we wait until tomorrow?" Periwinkle asked. "Or maybe next month?"

"It has to be now," Tink replied.

It was late now, the sun had set and had yielded to a dark, starry night with a bright, three quarters moon hanging high in the night sky. A faint light was visible through the windows of Vidia's sour plum tree where she made her home. She was most likely preparing for bed, like most fairies of Pixie Hollow were doing at this hour.

Tinker Bell knocked on the door. There wasn't an immediate reply.

"Maybe she's asleep already?" Periwinkle suggested.

"Vidia doesn't strike me as the kind of fairy who sleeps with a nightlight," Tinker Bell replied. She knocked harder.

"Go away!" Vidia shouted from the comfortable confines of her home.

"Okay, we tried," Periwinkle blurted. "Let's go."

"No, we do this now," Tinker Bell told her sister.

"I knew you were going to say that." The little frost fairy emptied the water from the pockets of her insulating coat and replenished the frost to keep herself cold enough to exist in the warm side of Pixie Hollow.

Tinker Bell knocked again. "Vidia, its Tinker Bell and Periwinkle. We've come to apologize."

Nothing.

"Vidia? It's us. We're not here to harass you," Tink began.

"We just want to make amends," Periwinkle added.

Still nothing. Tinker Bell banged on the door one more time. "Vidia!?"

The door flew open. Standing in the opening was Vidia, frustrated and dressed in her pajamas.

"WHAT?!" she yelled at the two girls.

Tinker Bell began. "Vidia, we just want to uh…, is that…?"

Periwinkle couldn't even talk. She tried to muffle her laughter, but failed. "Mmph. Pkrrk. Hee hee, HA HA!"

Clutched in Vidia's arm was an old and somewhat worn teddy bear. It was missing one eye and a seam was about to split.

Tinker Bell smiled and was barely able to contain herself. "You sleep with a stuffed bear? The big and mean Vidia sleeps with a-?"

"Don't… you… dare...," Vidia spat. Her secret was out. She slept nights curled up with a stuffed teddy bear.

 **~O~**

Vidia had received the bear as a gift from Lizzy one Christmas Day. The sweet and kindly girl knew enough to present it to Vidia when the others were not looking.

"I know what it's like to live alone," Lizzy told her. "My mother died when I was born. I've lived with just my father. When he is at work I have no one else to talk to or play with. There is Mrs. Perkins, but she is the Governess and mostly cares for the house and keeps me doing my homework and chores. It can be awfully lonely." She then pointed to her many stuffed animals and toys. "On those days my friends here keep me company and I don't feel so lonesome anymore."

The little bear was commissioned by Lizzy herself. She convinced the artisan to make the tiny bear as a piece for her dollhouse playset, though her intentions were always as a gift for Vidia. "Perhaps on those days when you are feeling that way, too, this little bear can be your friend. Someone to comfort you and fill up that empty feeling in your heart."

Though she did accept the gift gracefully, Vidia thought that Lizzy was being a bit too presumptuous. Vidia was used to living alone. She had purposefully chosen to isolate herself even long after he own guild welcomed her back into their housing area, a place called The Nest.

 _I don't need some dumb toy to make me comfortable_ , she thought. _I'm happy all by myself._

As it turned out, the girl was right. The stuffed animal, which Vidia soon dubbed "Mr. Bear" became a source of comfort and companionship for her. Some nights she would come home and grabbed it up into her arms. He was her best friend and she was his and Vidia always slept more serenely at night with him tucked away in her arms.

 **~O~**

Vidia was mortified, embarrassed and most of all infuriated. Tinker Bell and Periwinkle couldn't stop laughing at her and her bear. She burned at their willful disregard for her privacy and her personal choice to keep this child's toy as place of calm within the turbulent storm of daily life.

"Vidia we could never have guessed," Tinker Bell said between guffaws.

"Is that what's bothering you?" she hissed. "That I sleep with this at nights? Well fine, maybe this will shut you up." Vidia stormed out of her home still in her pajamas and walked to the edge of the cliff where her tree grew. From there she flung the bear into the deep expanse of the canyon with as much force as her burning fury could allow.

"Vidia? What are you doing?" Tink gasped, her laughing instantly evaporating. "Why?"

"To teach you a lesson," the flyer growled as she returned to her home, slamming the door in their faces.

 **~O~**

She missed that bear. Mr. Bear became more than just a toy or a stuffed animal to curl up with at night. She felt less alone with it and it became her confidant when she had no one else to talk to. The next afternoon she flew down into the canyon to find her treasured stuffed animal but it was long gone. Someone or something took it.

Vidia tried to blame it on Tinker Bell and Periwinkle but ultimately put the blame upon herself and her pride. She tossed it to teach the two sisters a lesson but Vidia only succeeded in hurting herself. She was alone again and this time it hurt more than ever before. Now she knew what she had been missing all along.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Vidia reviewed her new identification card. She was now certified in both first aid and CPR. She was highly reluctant to proceed with her CPR training because at first she thought it involved kissing someone. _How backwards are these people?_ she thought. _You can't bring someone back to life with a kiss. That's just in fairy tales._

The irony of that thought hit her like a ton of bricks. _Oh right. I'm in a town full of fairy tale characters. And Mary Margaret is Snow White. Boy did I put my foot in my mouth that time._

It was early evening when the class ended and Claire returned to an empty booth. Hartley and Penny had given away every item and presented her with a signup sheet loaded with names and potential jobs.

"There are over five full pages," he told her. At thirty names a page that was more than one hundred and fifty possible jobs she could line up.

"Yowza," Claire bleated. "How can I ever thank you?"

"May I accompany the loveliest lady in all of Maine on a tour of his festival?" he asked gallantly.

Claire blushed a bit. "Of course, my dear sir." She held out her hand and Hartley delicately kissed it.

"I guess we are on our own again," Vidia mumbled.

Hartley, though, sensing that Claire wanted to spend some time with her own at the Miner's Day Festival suggested they all go together. Claire smiled at just how easily he was accepting of her two daughters, almost as if they were his own.

They visited several booths enjoying numerous games of chance and skill. Hartley won a plastic tiara at one game. He placed it upon Claire's head and called her his queen.

"You don't know the half of it," Vidia murmured. Later, at the ring toss game, Tina won a stuffed turtle doll. This instantly conjured up images of Vidia's own stuffed bear. The loss of the bear hit her with much greater impact than Vidia was prepared for. The emptiness in her heart returned almost instantly and she longed for the return of her one true companion in life.

With the evening sky turning dark the group of five made their way indoors to the rummage sale. Here were tables that had been rented to individuals who sold all manner of nick knacks, arts and crafts, knitted shawls and blankets and a few tables where people sold off their useless stuff. Basically, a garage sale. Most of what was available at these tables were old pieces of junk that the owners thought they could foist off on someone for a quarter or fifty cents. There were rusted tools, old movies on VHS, at least two features on LaserDisc and some stuffed toys in various conditions of disrepair.

Vidia was sifting through this rubbish when she came across a something that made her heart leap.

"MR. BEAR!" she cried happily, snatching the toy bear from the table and squeezing it impassionedly. "I thought I would never see you again."

Tina and Penny stared at each other and then at Valerie in utter disbelief. "Mr. Bear?" Both nearly fell onto the floor in fits of laughter.

"How much?" Vidia asked one of the men at the table. Suddenly her heart stopped. The persons who owned this junk and her bear were none other than Mr. Gold's employees. They were also known in Pixie Hollow as Swift and Festus.

"It has a price tag of two dollars," Claire told her, pointing to a piece of masking tape that was attached to the bear's slightly worn cloth.

"For you, since you like it so much, I'll give you a special price," the man who was once Festus said to Vidia. "Twenty dollars."

Claire and Hartley were insulted. "That's highway robbery," Claire admonished.

"Now see here, that price tag says two dollars," he said. "How can you possibly justify raising the price like that?"

"Easy, she wants it more than anything," he answered. "I'm sure she'll be willing to pay anything to get it."

Vidia was right. She did want this more than anything and she had tipped her hand far too easily for her to try and negotiate a better price. Hartley tried his best to make Festus see reason, but the seller held firm. Vidia's brief moment of joy came crashing down. She was about to remove a twenty dollar bill from her pocket, but then thought better of it.

At least now she knew that Mr. Bear had come to Storybrooke. And though he was in the hands of one of her most hated enemies at least Mr. Bear was safe. Vidia put the bear back on the table and walked away from it. She felt no satisfaction in this small victory over the two sparrow men who nearly wrecked her life in Pixie Hollow. The loss was far too great.

She wondered if she was making the same mistake again. Was her pride getting in the way? Or had Vidia made the right decision? "I can live without it," she told herself trying to justify her actions. "It's just a child's toy and I'm not a child."

Nevertheless, she felt the old wound opening up again. That emptiness in her heart returned.

* * *

 **Vidia's teddy bear can be found in a deleted scene from _Tinker Bell and the Legend of the NeverBeast_.**

 **Thanks for reading.**


	13. Chapter 13

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **A Disney Fairies / Once Upon A Time Crossover**  
 **Season 1, Episode 14, Chapter 9**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

After the demoralizing moment at the docks when Sister Astrid found out that Leroy lied about selling the candles, the custodian felt like a total failure. It seemed that no matter what, everything he tried to do failed. He saddled up to a barstool at Granny's and found Mary Margaret Blanchard already there drowning her own sense of failure and isolation in drink.

"I'll have what she's having," he said as he sat down next to her. Outwardly they both looked as dejected as they felt inside.

Ms. Blanchard wanted to know why he made such wild promises to Sister Astrid. And why he was so attracted to a nun. Leroy wasn't so much attracted to her in a romantic sense, but he found her faith in him refreshing. "My whole life people have been telling me what I couldn't do. She was the first person who told me I could do anything; who believed in me. I didn't want to let her down."

He was reminded that there were consequences for doing something when the entire world tells you otherwise. Ms. Blanchard was a pariah in Storybrooke. Her friends, her fellow teachers at the school, even Granny had turned their backs on her.

The custodian sighed. "Don't you have any good memories with David that you liked?" he asked her in return. "Any moments you enjoyed?"

"I guess."

"Well isn't that what life is about? Holding on to your good memories?" Leroy felt that all life had ever taught him was that any dream or ambition he had was always out of reach. All he ever wanted out of this was a moment with Astrid. One that could give him even the slimmest hope that any dream was possible. Nothing more.

"You've had all that. I haven't. So stop feeling sorry for yourself."

"Well, if I had the dream it certainly wasn't worth it," Mary Margaret declared.

"Then sitting her drinking won't make the pain go away."

"What will?"

"I can only think of one thing." Leroy gulped the last of his liquor and strode out the door looking hell-bent for leather.

Worried, Mary Margaret jumped from her stool and followed him out the door.

* * *

 **~O~**

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

"Heigh Ho!" Dreamy said as he reentered the mines.

"You came home!" Sneezy remarked, surprised to see his brother return.

"It's good to see you," Bossy told him, happy that Dreamy had finally come to his senses.

"Nowhere else I would rather be," Dreamy answered in return. "Bossy, my axe."

The head dwarf handed Dreamy his pickaxe and Dreamy returned to the work for which he was born to do. He found a particular vein of diamonds and began to swing, clanging the point of his axe into the hard packed dirt. The anger, frustration, heartbreak and sadness all bubbled up inside of him. Dreamy slammed his axe into the wall of the mine harder and harder and harder, unleashing all of his pent up emotions with every stroke until finally the handle of his pickaxe snapped.

His brothers watched in amazement as he beat the walls of the mine with his tool until it broke. They could tell he didn't like being here and that his reasons for returning were not pleasant. What they just witnessed wasn't just the explosion of his bitterness, but also a change in the dwarf they knew. For when he was handed a new axe the name which imprinted itself on the handle wasn't the one they were expecting.

"Here you are, Dreamy," Bossy said, handing him the new pickaxe.

"It's not 'Dreamy' anymore," he said looking at the name which appeared on the handle. "It's Grumpy now." The joyfulness and innocence that once resided in his heart were gone. Taking their place were anger and bitterness and self-loathing. His constant smile became a permanent scowl. The light in his eyes extinguished, and they looked as black and bleak as two lumps of coal. The bubbly personality was replaced by cold stares and vitriolic rejoinders.

In that moment Dreamy died and Grumpy was born.

* * *

 **~O~**

THE WINTER WOODS, NEVER LAND (The Early Edwardian Era)

When word first reached Periwinkle that her sister had left Pixie Hollow for good she was devastated. She and Tinker Bell had only learned of each other's presence a few years ago. They had a lifetime together to look forward to, but now that evaporated in the blink of an eye.

"She left a note just for you," Fairy Mary informed her. Tink had hastily written letter to her friends in general which she placed in her own home where it could be easily found. However, Tinker Bell could not go without authoring a proper goodbye to her flesh and blood. This she left on the border between the Autumn Forest and the Winter Woods, the same place where their wings glowed for the first time and set them each on a course that would bring them face to face.

In it Tinker Bell explained all the reasons she had for leaving, every major event which drove her out of Pixie Hollow and into the company of the boy who wouldn't grow up. "Peter is offering me a life of glorious fun and adventure. I'll never have to worry about feeling obsolete or rejected. My one truly great regret is that I cannot take you with me, Periwinkle. We had so much fun side by side and there was so much more we could have done. It pains me that I must to leave you, but my future isn't in Pixie Hollow anymore. It lies somewhere else and I have to find it or be miserable for the rest of my life."

Periwinkle understood why Tinker Bell didn't bring her along. As a winter fairy Peri would not be able to survive the warmer environments outside of the Winter Woods. For years she hated being cooped up in the winter area of Pixie Hollow. When they first met, Tinker Bell devised a way for Periwinkle to leave the coldest season of the fairy homeland. Visiting Springtime Square and watching the butterflies flutter in Rosetta's garden, Peri felt as if the shackles of her life had finally been cast off. Now that Tinker Bell had gone, Periwinkle felt those shackles slam shut on her all over again.

Tink noted in her missive that she hoped they could meet again when the winter fairies brought their season to the mainland. She finished her letter by saying, "Remember, we are sisters and nothing can ever change that."

Periwinkle grieved the loss of her sister for days afterwards. Each night that followed, Peri would sit on the ledge of her home from which she could see almost all of Pixie Hollow. From this perch she also had a perfect view of the night sky and the second star to the right which was their doorway to the mainland. Periwinkle stared into the distant horizon and wondered what mischief her sister had gotten into this day. Did she and Peter fight pirates? Did they visit the mainland? Maybe they had a conference with the Indians of the island?

Some nights Periwinkle thought she could see a distant pinprick of light moving across the darkened sky. Usually it was just a shooting star, or a firefly aloft over the warm seasons. But every once in a long while Periwinkle would feel something in her breast. A feeling that was familiar. She would stand and squint to try and get a better look.

"Tinker Bell. It's you. I just know it." Periwinkle would smile. She would then imagine her sister flying alongside Peter Pan as they went off for another fun filled adventure.

"Stay safe," Periwinkle would entreaty under her breath. "And don't ever forget: we will always be sisters."

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

In the Town Square people milled about as the strings of lights that Sister Astrid had strung up throughout the courtyard illuminated the area perfectly. They gave the grounds a truly festive atmosphere, like the stars in the heavens brought down to earth just to light the gathering. Standing above all of this was Leroy. He had entered the building where Dr. Hopper made his office on the second floor. He ascended to the roof and was now standing in the ledge, looking down on the unsuspecting revelers below. Mary Margaret, concerned that he might do something rash, followed him up the stairs and popped open the service door.

"Leroy! What are you doing? Don't jump!"

He looked at her like she was out of her flipping mind. "I'm not going to jump," he told her. "Are you kidding? Do you know how much damage I could do? I'm solidly built." Leroy patted his gut for added emphasis.

"So why are you up here?" she asked him.

Leroy held aloft a pickaxe he bought at the local hardware store. He wielded it in both hands like an old pro and said, "I'm getting my moment." With what could be thus deemed a mission statement Leroy swung with all his might and struck the wooden light pole that stood next to the building. He hit the transformer which caused it to explode into a shower of sparks and electricity. The entire town went black, including the courtyard below. Everyone was plunged into darkness except for those buildings that had backup generators like the hospital and Penny's house.

Ms. Blanchard was horrified by what he had just done. "Leroy, what are you doing?"

He smirked and declared, "I'm selling candles, sister."

Mary Margaret and Leroy returned to their booth and with a full stock started selling candles hand over fist. With no electricity to light the town those candles became the resident's only source of illumination, the combined light of each flame providing a warm and inviting glow.

To Vidia the area looked not too different from Pixie Hollow. Each flame reminded her of fairies flying through her home world on any given evening. It was a strange experience for her both eerie and yet familiar.

* * *

 **~O~**

"We did it, Leroy," Mary Margaret congratulated. "We sold out." Their stock was gone, all one thousand candles. Ms. Blanchard handed Leroy the strongbox with the money they had collected.

"Go ahead," she prodded, turning her gaze towards Sister Astrid who was conversing with others of her order.

Leroy brought the box to Astrid. "Here it is," he said presenting it to her. "Five thousand bucks. Piece of cake."

"You did it?" she said initially in stunned disbelief. "You sold every one of them? Leroy, you really are my hero."

Leroy blushed. "I had a little help."

"Well…, you made it all happen."

"You have no idea." With his confidence restored Leroy decided then and there to refurbish his boat and proposed to have Sister Astrid as his first passenger. She smiled and agreed happily to his offer.

"Look how beautiful it is," she said. With the city lights gone and only the glow of the candles the night sky never looked lovelier. And above it all were fireflies, engaged in their elegant dance of lights.

* * *

 **Okay, one more chapter to wrap this up.**

 **Note: In this episode, for those who haven't seen it yet, the dwarfs do whistle Heigh Ho in a reference to the Disney film _Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs_.**


	14. Chapter 14

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **A Disney Fairies / Once Upon A Time Crossover**  
 **Season 1, Episode 14, Chapter 10**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Regina was not a happy person. She stormed into the Sheriff's station in a huff. Emma saw her and tried assure the mayor that she had already called out the power company to deal with the blackout.

"That's not why I'm here," Regina answered. "My friend Kathryn Nolan has been missing for twenty four hours. Now what are you going to do about it."

"I've got some evidence, but I'm not sure what to make of it yet," Emma replied.

Regina wanted to see it, however, since it was an ongoing investigation and still early in the proceedings Emma declined. Mayor Mills disliked being told no and threatened Emma as she so often did. "Sheriff Swan if you are covering for someone or not doing your job properly then I will find someone who will."

That was the end of the conversation as Mayor Mills turned on her heels and walked out. Emma didn't like being threatened, least of all by Regina, but in this case she had to do something. The mayor had the authority to call for a special election and replace Swan as the sheriff. With no choice in the matter she decided to act on what was available to her.

 **~O~**

Mary Margaret positioned a "sold out" sign at her booth. She doused the flame on her own candle and prepared to leave the festival. Despite all the good she had done, Ms. Blanchard was certain no one wanted her around. As she walked by several booths Granny pulled her aside. Without saying a word the restaurant owner tipped her candle and lit Ms. Blanchard's. In that simple action Mary Margaret was symbolically embraced by the community again. Surprised but relieved she proceeded to her vehicle.

Although David had tried to wash off the paint, the word "TRAMP" was still very visible on her windows. She was no longer a tramp and Mary Margaret chose to leave the Jeep Wagoneer for the morning and instead began her walk home, taking in what remained of the festival as she did.

She was feeling better about herself. People were now smiling at her.

"That was a nice thing you did for the nuns," Claire told her. "I apologize for not offering to help when you need it most."

"I don't blame you," Ms. Blanchard replied. "I don't think you could have helped matters." Mary Margaret looked directly at Valerie and smiled. Without a single word she thanked the girl for her efforts earlier that day.

Mary Margaret continued on. She looked down the street and was taken by surprise when she saw Sheriff Swan talking to David Nolan. Moments later she put him into the back of her police cruiser and drove off. Even from this distance Ms. Blanchard could tell that David looked worried. The schoolteacher began to wonder if David was now a suspect in his wife's disappearance.

* * *

 **~O~**

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND (The Edwardian Era)

It had been a few seasons since Tinker Bell ran away from Pixie Hollow to be with Peter Pan. Periwinkle cried nearly every night for almost a month before finally being able to pull herself together. It took time but she was able to get back to her work as a frost fairy. Her friends noticed, though, that her quality wasn't up to its usual standards and Periwinkle often began conversations with "What do you think Tinker Bell is doing right now?" or some variant thereof. Every year, on the anniversary of discovering each other, Periwinkle would remain home and cry all day and night. It was clear that no matter what, she would never be able to fully recover from Tink running off.

 **~O~**

Today the Four Seasons Festival was underway and Periwinkle was among the performers for the winter fairies. She managed to complete her routine without incident though it was hardly flawless. Spike and Gliss had hoped that engaging in the Festival would take her mind off of her sister, but they had very limited success.

"I hope she doesn't foul up in the grand finale," Vidia groused.

"She got through the winter performance just fine," Spike answered her.

"Yeah, but it could have been better," the fast flyer answered.

"And it could have been worse. Periwinkle won't let us down," Spike reassured her. "She never has before."

"That's because Tinker Bell was always here before," Vidia pointed out. "That little traitor is gone and Periwinkle is a mess. Just like our performance will be if she decides to start blubbering again."

"Hey, you worry about your own and we'll worry about ours," Spike barked. "If you would prefer to go back to your little house on the ledge and hide, be our guest." Spike and Vidia shared similar personalities and had at one time become fast friends. They were often seen together tossing snippy remarks to unsuspecting targets or engaging in friendly one-upmanship. After Tinker Bell ran away from home Vidia took it to mean that "friendship" meant nothing and her association with Spike promptly dissolved.

"ENOUGH!" Iridessa yelled to get them under control. "We have a job to do and we will do it right. Now like it or not we're in this together. Got it?"

Spike agreed. Vidia just sneered, but didn't offer any other kind of protest.

As the celebration wound down the evening sky turned from blue to yellow and then orange. The time was nearing six o'clock when the last of the guilds completed the final regular number.

"Okay, our turn," Iridessa shouted to her friends. "Let's get our equipment on stage as fast as possible."

In Tinker Bell's absence Iridessa became the de facto group leader. Rosetta tried it, but was too hotheaded most of the time and often worried more about her hair than anything else. Fawn gave it a try, but while she could resolve squabbles between the furry critters she cared for, dealing with fairies was another matter. She was clearly out of her depth.

Silvermist stepped forward but she could never set long term goals, manufacture a worthwhile vision or make up her mind beyond the here and now. Vidia wasn't even considered for the role. She had reverted to her earlier, reclusive self and refused to become involved in anything except at the queen's direct request. That left Iridessa. The light talent found that while she was up to the task, it didn't come nearly as easily to her as it did for Tinker Bell. Dessa continued to play the role of leader even though exasperation and frustration were her constant companions.

To help her, Iridessa began by making what most saw as the worst decision possible. She made Silvermist her project manager. Sil would be responsible for making schedules, managing resources and overseeing projects. The others waited for poor Silvermist to crash and burn. However Silvermist proved herself to be efficient at delegating tasks to others in a way that actually made sense. Even Vidia was dumbstruck.

"Close your mouth Vidia or a bug will fly in," Dessa once told the flyer.

Silvermist chalked it up to her training as a water fairy. She related aspects of project management to how she managed the day to day routines of her talent. But what proved to be even more shocking was how good she was at counseling others in conflict resolution, a talent Terence had seen several years before when Tinker Bell was tasked with making the Fall Scepter.

Silvermist chimed in and offered some of her homespun wisdom. "Spike, Vidia. We all miss Tinker Bell. We shouldn't convict Periwinkle because she has trouble letting go. Tinker Bell leaving has left a giant hole in each of our hearts that none of us can easily ignore. That pain has changed all of us, but it's worse for Periwinkle. She is Tink's sister and that emptiness in her heart is more painful than anything we can fathom. So let's go easy on her, okay?"

"Yeah, I guess so," Spike mumbled.

"Whatever helps you get through the day, Sil," was Vidia's snarky response. "But as far as I'm concerned, Periwinkle needs to get over herself."

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

The drive home from the Miner's Day Festival was a bit more treacherous than usual. With the transformer damaged the entire town was without power and that included the street lamps. Claire drove the work truck home while Hartley went his own way. Vidia brought home the minivan, but was accompanied by both Tina and Penny who seemed eager to have a little fun at Vidia's expense.

"Val, I don't ever remember you having a stuffed bear when you were growing up," Tina said harmlessly enough. "Was that before I was born?"

"Mr. Bear is from Pixie Hollow," Vidia answered truthfully. "I… used him as a decoration in my home."

Penny, hearing that, immediately joined into the conversation. "That was quite an emotional outburst for something that was just a decoration. Wait, were you sleeping with that bear?"

"NO!" Vidia hastily replied.

"O! M! G! She was sleeping with it," Penny observed, a big and silly grin across her face. "I bet you looked so cute with that little bear all tucked inside your arms while you slept."

Vidia rolled her eyes.

"Okay, so why didn't you just pay the twenty dollars?" Tina asked, giggling.

Vidia sighed. "It's a child's toy and I'm too old for one, that's why."

"Yeah, well you are twenty five," Tina said, seeming to agree with her.

"I'm a little bit older than that," Vidia corrected.

"So, how old are you again?" Penny asked.

"Four hundred and forty three," Vidia answered.

"Oh. Well, don't worry, sis," Tina answered with a smile, "you don't look a day over four hundred."

The two teens collapsed into fits of giggles and guffaws while Vidia just burned. She could have reacted to them, but figured once this curse was lifted they would remember and feel pretty stupid for how they acted tonight.

Tina stopped laughing long enough to assure Vidia that her secret was safe with them. Penny then piped up and said she had already added this tidbit of information to her Facebook page from her smartphone.

"What's a face book?" Vidia asked.

That question brought stares from both teens right before they burst into more peals of laughter and giggling. They were having so much fun at Valerie's expense. To Vidia it was like old times. Old times she would rather forget, but considering the here and now she was willing to take any shred of familiarity until the curse could be lifted and everyone was safely returned to Pixie Hollow.

* * *

 **~O~**

THE PIRATE SHIP _JOLLY ROGER_ (off the coast of Never Land, The Edwardian Era)

Captain Hook had done it. He was finally going to taste victory in his ongoing war with Peter Pan. Earlier, Peter brought with him what Hook dubbed as three brats from the mainland, a girl and two boys. These were the Darling children: Wendy, John and Michael. Tinker Bell became jealous that Wendy might steal away Peter and the pixie would be left alone all over again. Tink had embraced her life of fun and adventure and she wasn't about to let this little whelp take it away from her so she tried to kill the Wendy girl with the help of the Lost Boys. For this reason Pan banished the little pixie for a week.

Hook used that to his advantage. He had his boatswain Mr. Smee capture the fairy and tricked her into revealing Pan's hideout inside of Hangman's Tree. As a reward for her betrayal Tink was locked up inside of one of Hook's lanterns. James Hook, ship captain, pirate and all around nasty villain set a trap for Peter. After capturing the Darling children along with the Lost Boys Hook left Peter a time bomb dressed up as a present from Wendy. It had specific instructions for Pan not to open it until six o'clock, which was when the bomb was set to go off. This assured that Pan would be near the bomb when it detonated.

Hearing of Hook's plan to kill Peter, Tinker Bell knocked over her lantern prison and escaped, racing to Hangman's Tree to save Peter so he could rescue Wendy and the others. She got there just in time, but Peter, who was so stuck up on himself that he rarely listened to anyone, just shoved her away. With no alternative Tink knocked the bomb out of his hands and into a distant corner just one second before it went off.

 **~O~**

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

The Grand Finale of the Four Seasons Festival seemed to be going off without a hitch. Everyone was hitting their marks perfectly, even Periwinkle. She and her fellow frost fairies were pulling ice crystals into the air as part of the giant light show that was to close the festivities. The team, led by Spike, ascended to their positions by taking wide circles, passing the other fairies of the warm seasons who were flying in the opposite direction by only millimeters. It was a precision execution of precision choreography.

Until Periwinkle began to falter. Her wings suddenly glowed brightly and began to fade. She wilted despite the presence of snow falling from the snow maker.

"Peri, we're almost done. Hang on a little longer," Gliss said, trying to encourage her friend.

"I… I can't…" With that Periwinkle almost fainted and fell from the sky. The entire show-stopping routine abruptly ended and dissolved into chaos. Gasps came from the crowd as several other fairies grabbed hold of Periwinkle just before she crashed into the ice rink below.

"I knew she was going to do this," Vidia spat.

"Peri? Periwinkle, what's wrong?" Spike asked her.

"Tink. Tinker Bell… she's dying," Peri answered with labored breath. "I can feel it. We're both dying."

"What? What do you mean-."

KABOOOOOMM!

Suddenly the ground shook violently and the air was filled with the sound of deafening thunder. The Pixie Dust Tree rattled and fresh, green leaves fell in abundance. The flow of dust was briefly interrupted before it resumed, first as a trickle and then later at its former pace.

"EARTHQUAKE!" Someone shouted.

"What's going on? What's happening?" others began to howl.

"Stay calm everyone," Queen Clarion announced in a loud but steady voice. "We must not engage in idle speculation. The scouts are already dispatched to determine the cause. Now please, stay seated."

Both Clarion and Lord Milori descended to the arena floor to attend to the fallen frost fairy. Her face looked more pale than normal and the light of her fairy glow began to fade. A healing talent fairy was summoned. As Periwinkle's life continued to drain away her body was packed with ice to keep her as cold as possible. The attending physician tried every possible remedy she could whip up in the short time available to her. Not even the sprinkling of additional fairy dust could restore the dying fairy.

Rosetta, Iridessa, Fawn, Silvermist, Spike, Gliss, Sled and Slush all gathered around her waiting for the inevitable. They wept both for the impending death of Periwinkle, but also for the death of their one time friend Tinker Bell which Peri's condition foretold. Vidia, stayed away. She blamed this entirely on Tinker Bell repeating that it was all Tink's fault.

 _You did this to yourself, traitor fairy_ , she said, cursing Tinker Bell. _You ran away and now you're paying for it. And so is your sister. I hope you're happy._

Despite her attempts to maintain her veneer of nastiness, deep inside Vidia was heartbroken. A single tear rolled down her cheek as the frost fairy began to draw her last, labored breaths.

 _Tinker Bell, don't go_ , Vidia wept in a fleeting thought.

 **~O~**

Inside Hangman's Tree amid the crumbling ruins of his hideout Peter Pan searched desperately for Tinker Bell. Her glow began to fade, the shock of the explosion nearly dousing her light forever. He pleaded for her to live, proclaiming how wrong he was. That he should have listened to her more. To save her life he had to believe more than he ever did in the life of one little fairy.

 **~O~**

Scouts reported back to Queen Clarion. The ministers gathered around her along with Lord Milori.

"Pirates," Nyx told them. "The _Jolly Roger_ is anchored off the shores of Never Land Island."

"Then what was the earthquake?" Clarion asked.

Thick billowing clouds of smoke could now be seen in the sky. Nyx replied that some kind of explosion occurred nearby. "It was in the vicinity of Hangman's Tree. It's too far for cannon fire. We think the pirates may have set off a bomb there."

"The Jolly Roger is Captain Hook's ship," Clarion said, trying to reason this out. "He has been at war with Peter Pan for several years." Then it dawned on her. "Hangman's Tree must be Peter's secret hideout."

"Then Tinker Bell must have been with him when the bomb went off," Milori added. "She must be dead or dying. But why is Periwinkle feeling the same effect?"

The Keeper of All Fairy Knowledge, who was hanging around the fringe of the conversation cleared his throat and put forth an explanation. "If you don't mind me a-buttin' in here, I think I can explain. You see, Tinker Bell and Periwinkle were born of the same laugh. They each share half of it. If one half dies, the other dies with it. Or at least that's the theory."

Clarion put her hand to her mouth and gasped. "Oh dear. How can this be happening? What can be done, Keeper?"

"Well, ah, the only thing that can save Periwinkle is for Tinker Bell not to die."

 **~O~**

It seemed that fate had dealt her a cruel hand. In his most desperate hour Tinker Bell had come to his rescue, putting her own life on the line to save his. When Pan finally shoved aside the last broken timber that stood in his way he found her. She lay near death on the floor of the hideout. Her body turning darker with each passing second. Tinker Bell managed to convey what Hook had done.

"I need you, Tink," he told her. "I need you to help me save Wendy. I can't do it alone."

It was a difficult and utterly painful admission for him to make. Peter Pan was a boy who thought very highly of himself. Too highly at times. Often his cunning got him out of tight spots that his arrogance created. Today, there was nothing he could do to avoid losing his friend. Nothing except hold her in the palm of his hand and say, "I believe."

 **~O~**

"YOUR HIGHNESS!" the healing talent screamed. "Come quickly!"

Clarion and the others immediately attended to the scene where Periwinkle lay. The darkness in her skin began to fade as life seemed to return from out of nowhere. Her body slowly luminesced as her fairy glow was restored. She opened her eyes and looked upon the faces of all her closest friends and allies. She smiled.

"Tink is going to make it."

"Oh, and so are you," Rosetta cooed.

Rosetta broke into tears while Sled hugged her in a deep embrace. Iridessa took in deep breaths to calm her frayed nerves. Fawn lay down on the ice and then let out a tremendous whoop while flailing her arms and legs in victory. Silvermist leapt for joy and fluttered across the sky allowing the late evening sunlight to touch her face as if for the first time ever.

Vidia seemed unprovoked by the news, but inside she was relieved.

Terence, who took Tink's leaving very personally, stood aside and found a dark and quite corner. He knelt down and vomited. Then he began to cry. This moment dredged up far too many bad memories for him. Terence had blamed himself for Tinker Bell leaving and was willing to assume responsibility for her death. Now all he wanted was for her to come home. If not for his sake, then for Periwinkle's.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Vidia was dressed for bed. She was about to turn off the battery powered lantern when she heard a knock at her door. "It's us," a girl's voice announced. "Tina and Penny."

Vidia sighed. "Come in."

Claire had invited Penny to stay the night. She couldn't allow the fifteen year old to stay alone in her own dark house without power. The two girls were to sleep in Tina's room, with Penny on the floor in a bed made of cushions, blankets and a sleeping bag. Before going off to bed they decided to pay Valerie one last visit.

The two girls entered the room together and looking rather contrite explained their presence. "We want to apologize for how we treated you on the drive home," Penny said. "We forget just how hard this must be for you."

"Yeah, the things you say are so off the wall that it's impossible for us not to laugh even when we shouldn't," Tina explained.

"We also wanted to bring this to you," Penny said, motioning to Tina.

The little blonde brought from behind her back a small plastic sack. From it she took a plush if worn looking teddy bear with one eye missing and a seam that was stitched back together.

Vidia's face lit up. "Mr. Bear!" Once again she took the bear and embraced it fondly, wrapping her arms around it like a cherished possession. "But when…?"

Tina explained. "When we were waiting in line to buy candles from Ms. Blanchard Penny snuck back into the school."

"Yeah, with only candles for light the two men who were selling it didn't recognize me," Penny continued. "I got it for two dollars. And now he's all yours."

Vidia put the bear on her bed and embraced the two teens. "Thanks. That's the nicest thing anyone has done for me."

When Vidia crawled into bed shortly after Tina and Penny had retired to their own room she tucked herself under the covers and snuggled up to her dear teddy bear. She clutched it jealously and smiled like she hadn't in such a long time. "I thought I had lost you again, Mr. Bear," she told it. In Pixie Hollow she never found her precious gift despite searching far and wide for months. How it got into the hands of Swift and Festus here in Storybrooke she would never know. What mattered most was that she had been reunited with her closest friend and most cherished companion.

"I have so much to tell you, Mr. Bear, but not tonight. Tomorrow we can start catching up."

The ultra-soft bear never felt so good against her skin. Within minutes Vidia descended into a deep slumber that was more restful and pleasant since that first night she decided to sleep with it by her side.

* * *

 **~O~**

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND (The Late Victorian Era)

Vidia lay sleepless in her bed. The faint glow of one lone candle illuminated the interior of her sour plum tree home. It was halfway to springtime on the mainland and Vidia had been unusually restless lately. She couldn't put her finger on why, but she did note a rather constant feeling of loneliness. Was it because of what Lizzy told her?

"I like being alone," she muttered. Maybe it wasn't that she chose to live a generally solitary life, but that some days she just needed companionship. A friend she could lean on or speak to, a confidant or confessor. Somebody she could trust to listen and not judge.

The flyer rolled over in her bed for the umpteenth time that night. She stared at the walls, the windows and the ceiling fan overhead counting its rotations until she gave up. She took in a deep breath and sighed. Then for no apparent reason her eyes fell on the bear Lizzy had given to her as a Christmas gift. She rolled her eyes, then rolled over and muttered, "Please. It's a child's toy."

Half an hour later, with the possibility of sleep tonight becoming increasingly fleeting Vidia began to try various remedies. First was warm milk, but that didn't work. Then she tried to do some stretches to tire herself, but she was already exhausted. She tried sleeping in different positions or with pillows in different places. Nothing worked.

"Ugh! What's wrong with me?" she asked no one. Her eyes fell on the doll once again and said, "What are you looking at, Mr. Bear?" She called it "Mr. Bear" with a mocking tone.

Its disarming smile never wavered. It did not judge her nor did it offer a rebuke for her snippy remark. Vidia sat in the middle of her room and stared at the foolish toy. She studied it looking for any reason to toss it off the cliff where her home was located. She spoke to it sporadically.

"Okay, so you want to talk?" she asked it. It said nothing, but it seemed more than welcoming. "Fine. I think you're stupid. You are a child's toy in the house of a grown fairy. And I'm stupid for talking to a child's toy."

Vidia kept talking to it, insulting it, denying it and then would come back to it to talk some more. Somehow the nature of the conversation turned to a different subject. "I feel like I'm not appreciated," she admitted to it. "I work hard every day gathering dust, but while everyone else gets a 'hey, good job' or a 'well done' or even a 'now that looks good,' I get nothing. I know, I know. I should probably be nicer, but this is who I am. Why can't the others just accept me this way? Why can't someone tell me 'good job, Vidia' when they come to pick up the dust I collect? My works is just as important as anyone else. Maybe even more so."

She continued to vent her emotional distresses to the bear for over an hour and a half. And before she knew it Vidia was holding it between in her hands. The fabric was so soft and warm. It's sweet and endearing smile almost seemed to say, "I appreciate you, Vidia."

The flyer returned the bear to its spot on her shelf. When she lay down again Vidia slept well. Several nights later she wasn't feeling very chummy and spoke to it again when she could not sleep. After another lengthy conversation Vidia dropped off almost instantly. By the time spring arrived she regularly tucked it under her arms before bed every night. "You're my best friend from now on, Mr. Bear." This time she had no malice in her voice when calling it by that name. She had embraced it both physically and emotionally. From that moment forward she slept with it by her side. As long as Mr. Bear remained her truest companion Vidia never slept better.

* * *

 **Whoo, that was a long one, but I hope everyone enjoyed. This wraps up Episode 14. Thanks for reading.**


	15. Chapter 15

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **A Disney Fairies / Once Upon a Time Crossover**  
 **Season 1, Episode 15, Chapter 1**

 _The following events take place during the first season episode titled "Red-Handed."_

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

With the power still out Tina and Penny prepared for bed in the darkness, pierced only by the light of two LED flashlights and a battery powered lantern. "It's like camping out," Tina whispered to her friend.

"Really? I've never done that," Penny replied, saying it as if confessing her sins. "I don't get out much."

"How sad," Tina remarked. She turned over in bed to look at her friend. Tina was sleeping in her bed while Penny was more than comfortable with a sleeping bag on top of sofa cushions and folded blankets. "We should do that one day. Go out camping, I mean. Dad and I did that once. We pitched a tent in the backyard one spring night and slept under the stars. We tried to cook something on a campfire, but Mom insisted on bringing us a casserole."

Penny smiled. "That sounds wonderful," she said wistfully. "I wish I had parents like yours. My mom and dad didn't know what to do with me, so now I'm on my own. I've been shut inside that house for a long time now."

"Why?"

Penny sighed. "I love computers and electronics. I would rather sit and surf the web or read books or repair an Xbox than do anything outside of my house. That's why I was so excited about your test results. I live my life vicariously through others. The monitor of my computer is like my window to the world."

"Maybe it's time you started living life for real," Tina suggested. "Today was a first step."

"It was? Yeah, it was. The Miner's Day Festival. It was amazing and so much fun."

"Then it's settled," Tina declared. "Tomorrow you start living away from your computer."

"I can bring my tablet!" Penny said excitedly.

Tina sighed. _Baby steps. Baby steps._

 **~O~**

After additional questioning by the sheriff, David Nolan was released. He was never under arrest. Emma Swan showed him Kathryn's phone records which contradicted his statement that David never contacted his wife the day she disappeared. Swan released him because how he answered her questions convinced her that David was telling the truth.

On her way home, Emma was met by her roommate Mary Margaret Blanchard who was very concerned for David. Ms. Swan could tell her very little except that David was released and that so far the only evidence they had was Ms. Blanchard's affair and that Kathryn delivered a well-deserved slap the day she confronted the schoolteacher.

"Well-deserved?" Ms. Blanchard asked, wondering if that was how Emma perceived her.

The sheriff was only preparing her for what was to come. While Granny, Claire and others were willing to forgive Mary Margaret not everyone would. And a lawyer would be especially harsh if it came down to that.

 **~O~**

In Granny's Diner Ruby was talking with one of her customers, August W. Booth, who had many intriguing stories of his travels around the world. She was amazed that he could live without a roof over his head.

"Well, the nice thing about a motorcycle is that if I didn't like a place I could just pack up and leave," he told her with a smile. It was clear he had no intention of doing that here in Storybrooke. He seemed to genuinely like the place.

When asked, described prayer temples in faraway lands carved into mountains and filled with lemurs whose eyes would glow at night. She was utterly fascinated by his tales, Ruby had never so much as taken a single step out of Storybrooke and here was this man who had travelled the world.

"Ruby," Granny called to her. "Ruby. Quite flirting with the customers."

The girl kept chatting up the young man until the elder woman yelled at her from across the room.

"RUBY!"

Granny wanted her granddaughter to work Friday and Saturday nights, the same nights that Ruby often caroused and shacked up with men. The girl was furious that her grandmother would break their agreement. Not only was Ruby angry that her schedule was being tampered with, but she began to feel cooped up in that tiny diner and small town. She wanted adventures with lemurs, just like her customer.

Granny refused to budge and quickly this led to an argument that ended with Ruby quitting and leaving the restaurant for good.

 **~O~**

* * *

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

Widow Lucas and her granddaughter Red were preparing for bed. It was wolf's time and they needed to lock up the house. Ruby had a habit of speaking with Peter, a young man who was sweet on the young woman, but Granny would have none of it. He was, in her eyes, a wastrel. A young man who only wanted one thing from Red and that was her virtue. To keep Granny from finding out about their visits Peter came to Red's bedroom window to talk, but Widow Lucas had eyes on the back of her head and interrupted their time together.

Before bed a knock at the door came and they were greeted by a hunting party. They were intent on finding and killing the wolf that come out every month for a few days. It hunted at night and took sheep for food which deprived many locals of much needed wool and mutton and animals they could sell. Granny insisted that they give up their wild fantasies and chased them off. Red wanted to join the hunting party, feeling cooped up under the tight reins of her grandmother, but the older woman adamantly refused.

The house was promptly locked up tight against the wolf. This included barring the doors and windows and dropping a heavy gate in front of the fireplace in case the beast tried to enter through the chimney. Red went to sleep, as always wearing her red hooded cape at Granny's insistence. The grandmother stood watch over the door in a rocking chair, crossbow at the ready.

"I'll sleep with the trolls in the afterlife," was what she always said when guarding the door.

 **~O~**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Ruby wanted to have those adventures that August told her about. She was tired of being cooped up in Storybrooke and working at the diner and the inn. It was still night and she went looking for her friend, Jo, in the hopes that she might sleep at her place tonight until Ruby could plan her future.

 **~O~**

Claire was downstairs looking through her planner. With the girls upstairs and bedding down for the night, Claire reviewed what the next few days would have in store for her. Tina's birthday was in two days. The cake had been ordered and would be ready that morning. She still needed to take Valerie shopping for gifts.

After that she would need to start working on her taxes. That meant another visit with her accountant, Marie. Claire always hated tax time. Especially when her own finances weren't so good. "Damn IRS, I could use that money."

She cursed the IRS every tax season since Charlie died. Money was tight and getting tighter. Whatever she had to pay to the federal government was money she desperately needed to pay other bills.

Claire was about done with her calendar when she heard something. The kitchen was dark, illuminated by only the light of a propane lantern. The sound was coming from inside the wall.

Scratch… scratch… scratch…

The middle aged mother grabbed the lantern and shined it against the wall where she heard the sound.

Scratch… scratch… scratch…

Claire tried to search the walls with the minimal illumination but could find nothing. Only the continuing sounds kept her investigating. She heard it move down the wall. Claire donned her vest jacket and went outside, lantern in one hand and flashlight in the other. The scratching wasn't discernable out here, but she did notice a hole in her wall behind the gas meter.

"Rats!" she said, but figuratively and literally. "Now I've got to call an exterminator in the morning. I sure hope the power is back by then."

 **~O~**

* * *

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

"FA-AWN!" Rosetta shrieked. Fawn, an earthy and energetic animal talent fairy, was playing a game of volleybug with friends when Rosetta screeched her name. The piercing yell felt like a shock going down her spine. Fawn had to cover hear ears and clench her eyes shut. A pill bug, rolled up into the ball, hit her smack in the head.

"OW!" Fawn yelped. She massaged the crown of her head after the accidental impact. "Ro? What's wrong?"

"What's wrong? WHAT'S WRONG!?" Rosetta said, still shrieking with anger. "This is what's wrong."

Fawn took one look and saw her garden fairy friend in a purely disheveled state. Her red hair was a mess, with a clumps of brown fur mixed in. Her red dress was torn in a few places and one of Rosetta's shoes was missing. Rosetta yanked one of the brown clumps from her hair and shoved it into Fawn's palms. She instantly recognized it as squirrel hair.

"What happened?" Fawn asked.

After a lengthy and irate rant Fawn was able to piece together that Rosetta had a squirrel problem. One of the furry little critters was running back and forth through her begonias to store nuts in a tree that lay on the edges of the garden. Every time it ran through Rosetta's flowerbed, which was every few minutes, her flowers got trampled. Rosetta tried to put an end to his rampages by getting in front of him. Ro got flattened by the squirrel for her troubles.

"Now go do something," Rosetta demanded.

"Okay, okay." Fawn knew that gardens were important to a garden fairy, but she still couldn't help but laugh at the absurdity of the situation. That all changed when she saw a well-trodden path running right down the middle of the flowerbed of the redheaded fairy's prized Everblooming Begonias.

"Oh no!" Fawn gasped. The damage was worse than anything Fawn was expecting. Rosetta could be very sensitive about her flowers, but this wasn't hyperbole. This was a real problem and only an animal talent like Fawn could resolve the issue.

Suddenly a fluffy, brown tail zipped through the blooms, knocking down more lovely flowers and breaking more stems. "He's doing it again!" Rosetta screamed right into Fawn's ears. "Stop him! Stop him!"

The squirrel scampered up a tree and disappeared into a hole, only his tail visible for a moment. Then it too vanished into the large oak. Fawn followed the squirrel into the tree where she found it stashing the acorn. She tried to talk to him, but the squirrel bounded past her and scurried down the bark, across the garden again and then into the trees on the other side.

"That didn't go well," Fawn muttered. The squirrel wasn't being very forthcoming. Rosetta's screeching didn't help matters. Every time the squirrel shot through the flowers she had another fit. Fawn chased the squirrel down and found him stealing an acorn from another tree.

"Hey, you can't take someone else's acorns," she told him, disappointed by his actions. "Put that back right now!"

The squirrel stopped, took the nut into his paws and barked something to her very quickly. He wasn't stealing, others were stealing from him. Fawn was confused. She followed him across the garden and into the other tree. Fawn blocked the exit forcing him to explain everything.

This squirrel had gathered nuts in the other tree only to learn that another squirrel had already claimed that tree for himself. The other squirrel told this one to remove the nuts by midday or those acorns were his to keep.

The seasons didn't change in Pixie Hollow, so storing nuts for the winter wasn't a necessity. However, the animal talents encouraged the practice so the little creatures would be ready once they were taken to the mainland where the seasons did change every year. Unfortunately, this poor thing chose the wrong tree and had to move his winter supply before losing it to another of his kind. Running across Rosetta's garden was simply the shortest route between the two trees.

The squirrel chattered some more, he couldn't get all of his winter stash out in time. He guessed he would have to forfeit more than half of what he had worked so hard to collect and the forests were already picked pretty clean. He would have very little for his new home. Fawn decided to help out. She talked with the other fairies who were playing volleybug and they all chipped in to help the squirrel move his stores to the other tree. Rosetta, who disliked getting dirty, didn't offer any assistance.

"That's okay, Ro," Fawn said, attempting to invoke some reverse psychology. "He'll just have to make a few extra runs through your garden."

That got the redheaded fairy to help out, on the condition that the squirrel stop running through the flowerbed. Clearly Ro was only in it for herself, but it helped complete the transfer before the midday deadline.

The job was done with time to spare. Fawn was quite pleased with the effort as was the young squirrel who could now rest easy. "Okay, Ro. No more squirrels running through your gardens. You can repair the damage and we can all be friends."

The squirrel, whom Fawn introduced as Fenwick, offered his gratitude by offering some of his acorns and nuts to Rosetta. Not exactly knowing what to do with them Rosetta asked Fenwick to keep them.

"Ro, you're insulting him," Fawn explained through clenched teeth and a low whisper. "When a squirrel offers you a nut from his stash as a gift you take it."

The redheaded garden fairy sighed. She really didn't know what to do with the nuts, but acted graciously as instructed and took the gifts. "Maybe I can have the cooking talents make nut butter out of them," Ro murmured.

"That's the spirit," Fawn responded.

Rosetta turned around, dropped the nuts on the ground and screeched. "FAWN! There's another squirrel and he's tearing up my blossoms. What's going on?"

Fawn recognized the larger, furry rodent that was bounding through the flowerbed. His name was Beauregard and he was not a pleasant animal to be around. Beauregard was a bully from the moment he was born and no animal fairy in Pixie Hollow could ever warm up to him. Bo, who was both larger and heavier, clawed his way up the tree where he found Fenwick with the acorns.

The two chattered and chirped and barked at each other, often times rudely. Fawn was taken aback at the conversation. It seemed that Bo was looking forward to a tree full of nuts when he got back. When they went missing he tracked down Fenwick and decided to steal this other tree seeing as it was full of "his" winter stash.

"Steal?" Fawn gasped. "You mean that wasn't your knothole to begin with?"

Bo snapped at her. That was never his tree, but Fenwick was such a pushover that it didn't matter. Bo never figured that others might intervene and help out.

Infuriated by the callousness of the larger squirrel, Fenwick stood his ground. He declared that this was his tree and these were his nuts. If Bo wanted a winter stash of his own he had to forage for them himself. In response, Bo grabbed Fenwick by the neck and tossed him out of the knothole of the tree. The smaller rodent flipped over and barely managed to land on his feet.

Fawn was burning with anger. "BO! That was mean. You give Fenwick back his tree this instant."

Beauregard, who was used to bullying his way around Pixie Hollow, did not respond well to Fawn's threats. His only reply was to grab the largest nut he could find and rocketed it at the animal fairy. It struck Fawn right in the temples. She was too close and couldn't duck. The impact sent her head over heels to the ground. Bo stuck his head out of the knothole and chattered something terrible before hurling a second acorn at the downed fairy. It missed only because Rosetta pulled Fawn out of the way.

Fawn was barely conscious and wasn't coherent in any fashion. "Fawn. Wake up, Fawn. Oh no. What do I do?" Then she remembered Fenwick. "Quick, go fetch a healer and bring him." To protect her friend Rosetta carefully pulled the animal fairy into the cover of the flowering blooms. Bo launched a few more nuts and acorns at the pair of fairies to drive them off. Rosetta didn't know why the animal fairies allowed that despicable creature to stay on the island, but now he had injured her friend.

"Come on, Fawn, wake up," Rosetta said, quivering with fear. "You're my best friend. Wake up."

* * *

 **Sorry for the long delay. I've been struggling to figure out what to do with Fawn in her backstory. I think I'm on to something, but we'll see how it shakes out. Thank you for your patience.**


	16. Chapter 16

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **A Disney Fairies / Once Upon A Time Crossover**  
 **Season 1, Episode 15, Chapter 2**

* * *

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

"Fawn?" Rosetta called. "Fawn? Wake up. Fawn, wake up."

"…hnng?" the little animal fairy groaned. Fawn opened her groggy eyes and looked around. The environment was not what she expected. Instead of flowers, trees, blue skies and honeybees buzzing about, Fawn was greeted by the inside of a tree. Rosetta was looking over her as was another fairy dressed in a clinical white outfit.

"Wha-?" Fawn mumbled. "What ha… happened? Where am I?"

The fairy dressed in clinical whites, a nursing talent, explained that she was in the hospital. Fawn had taken a nasty hit to the head when an angry squirrel flung an acorn at her. "You fell to the ground which only furthered the injury," she was told.

"Oh, Fawn, we thought we had lost you back there," Rosetta said, relieved but still gasping for breath. The animal fairy gave her a confused look. "You stopped breathing for almost two full minutes."

Then it hit her. The pain. The throbbing, aching, pulsing pain which filled her body with so much discomfort that she wanted to retch. Fawn traced it back to her forehead. When she laid a hand on her temples she found that it was wrapped in a bandage. Her mind seemed cloudy and she felt very light headed.

"Just lay still," the nurse told her. "What you need right now is plenty of rest so you can heal from your injury." The nursing talent instructed Rosetta to leave so Fawn could sleep.

"I'll visit you tomorrow, Fawn," the garden talent told her friend before leaving. "But I'll here bright and early to keep you company."

 **~O~**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

"Well, what do you think?" Chester asked Jo.

Jo pondered the question. "A little to the left," Jo answered.

Chester slid a large print of a mongoose in the wild over to the left a few inches. "Okay, what about now?"

"A little more," she instructed.

"Okay. Now?"

She looked at the print. Then at the paint color on the wall. Then the color of the carpeting in the room. Then at the windows on the adjacent wall studying the ambient lighting they would provide in the daytime. Then she studied the interior lighting of the room. Then she stared at the print again. Then at the paint color on the walls again. Then the carpeting. Then the windows again. Then at the interior lighting again. Then at the comforter on the bed. Then at the print again. Then the wall.

"Uh, honey, this thing is getting heavy," Chester complained. "Can I put it down now?"

"Just a second." Jo thought about it some more. Then she left the room for a moment before coming back. "I like it better in the hall."

"Oh for…," Chester groaned loudly before putting the framed print on the floor. He plopped down on the fluffy comforter on the bed, exhaling loudly.

"I heard that."

"Yeah, well you try hoisting a four foot tall picture for ten minutes," he said, exasperated. "This reminds me of that afternoon last spring you spent deciding where to plant your tree in the backyard."

"Well, if you didn't take so long digging and filling in all those holes we would have finished before dinner time," Jo snapped playfully. "Besides, the birds needed a place to nest and I had to make sure the tree was in exactly the right place."

"Babe, the birds don't care! They'll nest wherever."

"Well you should know," Jo fired back. "You like to nap wherever."

"Yes, but not when I'm awake," he told her with a wicked smile.

"What? That doesn't even make any sense." Before Jo could say another word the two were interrupted by a knock at the door. She and Chester answered it to find Jo's oldest and best friend standing in the doorway looking rather downcast.

"Ruby? What are you doing here so late?" Jo asked with great concern.

"Granny and I had a fight," the former waitress admitted through a sheepish smile. Jo invited her inside where Ruby explained everything that led to her being at Jo's house this evening. "Anyway, can I sleep here tonight?"

"Well, actually, Chester and I have decided to move in together," Jo told her best friend. "This is our first night under the same roof."

Ruby's eyes grew wide with excitement. "Really? Congratulations. Oh, but I guess that makes me a third wheel."

"Oh we're not having sex," Chester informed Ruby.

"Well then you're doing it wrong," Ruby asserted.

Jo's cheeks flushed. "We're only interested to see if we can tolerate being around each other all the time. Chester is going to sleep in the guest bedroom."

"Yeah, but I can take the sofa," Chester said. "Ruby can have the guest room for as long as she needs it."

"Oh I couldn't do that," Ruby answered. "Your first night as a couple is special."

"It's okay, he's used to sleeping just anywhere," Jo said with a gentle nudge and a wink.

"Hey!"

Ruby picked up her two bags and headed for the door, thanking her friend once again. Before leaving she suggested a few websites for ideas and told her that in her old room at Granny's inn there were some bottles of unused gels Jo and Chester could use for a more exciting sexual experience. After all, in Ruby's experience Jo had to find out if Chester was good enough to sleep with before finding out if he was good enough to live with.

"That girl has a one track mind," Chester commented. "Just like you."

"No I don't, Mr. Floor Snorer."

"See?!" A second later Jo's business cell phone rang. "Jo the Exterminator," she said answering it. "If you've got 'em we kill 'em."

She gesticulated wildly to Chester for a paper and pen. "I can be there tomorrow morning, Mrs. Kensington. That rat won't know what hit him."

"Ugh! I hate rats," Chester commented. "Now mice, those are my kind of rodents. They can be kind of cute on their own fuzzy way."

"Cute? Fuzzy? Really? I thought you were bigger man than that, Sleep Along Cassidy."

"Oh will you just drop it!"

 **~O~**

Ruby stood next to the town's bus stop on Main Street. The visit to Jo's house convinced her to leave town tonight. Jo was already on her own new adventure and she was still hanging around town waiting for something to happen. If Ruby was going to take her life by the horns she couldn't do it sleeping in Jo's guest bedroom.

While waiting for the next bus out of Storybrooke she was joined by Dr. Whale. He chatted her up with the intention of trying to sleep with her. Both Ruby and Dr. Whale were known for their sleeping around, but where Ruby had a good heart and usually remained on friendly terms with her many male lovers Whale had left behind him a trail of broken hearts and angry conquests.

As they were talking the two were joined by Sheriff Swan and Mary Margaret.

"Yeah, buses don't really run through here," Sheriff Emma Swan observed.

Mary Margaret, thinking that Ruby needed to think things over invited her to stay at her place. Ruby agreed and followed them home. At least she could get out of the cold. And away from Dr. Whale's cheap pick-up lines.

 **~O~**

* * *

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

Red woke up the next morning and found Granny still in her chair, alertly watching the door in case the wolf tried to break in. The threat was over now that it was daylight and Granny asked Red to check on the henhouse to make sure the wolf didn't get the chickens. "Don't forget to wear your hood!" Granny exclaimed as Red went out the door.

Red's footsteps crunched through the heavy snow as she made her way to the small shack that housed their chickens. Fortunately, the were left untouched and Red collected all the eggs the hens had laid overnight. Her task completed she was about to leave when the young woman heard something. Turning, Red saw a shadow and movement at the back of the henhouse.

"Who's there?" she asked.

A young woman emerged from a hiding place holding two freshly laid eggs. The woman, who was bundled up against the bitter cold, did not appear threatening, but instead looked most contrite for having to take from others.

"Are you stealing our eggs?" Red asked her.

"No… yes," she confessed. The young woman returned the two eggs to Red's basket and apologized for taking them.

"What's your name?" Red asked.

"Sn… Frosty."

"Frosty?"

The young woman explained that someone was looking for her and she could not give her real name for fear of being found. Red then suggested the name Margaret, but the woman didn't find it very pleasing, instead choosing the name "Mary."

Red invited Mary to stay with her and her grandmother, which the Mary gratefully agreed to do. First, though, Red had to fetch water from the well.

 **~O~**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

The next morning Mary Margaret decided to search the area just beyond the city where Kathryn Nolan had disappeared. While looking for clues Ms. Blanchard ran into David Nolan who said that he too was searching for his wife. Relieved, Mary Margaret began to talk to him but then realized that David was looking right through her. He kept repeating that he was trying to find Kathryn before continuing on, treating Mary Margaret as if she didn't even exist.

This odd behavior left Ms. Blanchard very concerned for David. She worried for his state of mind in the wake of Kathryn's disappearance.

 **~O~**

* * *

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

Fawn had been released from the care of the nursing talents yesterday and was told to remain in her house to recover further. This morning Rosetta came calling with some food, but when she arrived at Fawn's residence there was no one home.

"Now where is that girl?" Rosetta mumbled to herself. "She heard the doctor's orders."

On her way out the garden fairy crossed paths with Buck who informed her that Fawn rose early this morning and headed for Mermaid's Lagoon.

 _What's she doing there?_ Rosetta asked herself as she buzzed out that way. During her flight Rosetta passed near the Pixie Dust Tree the heart of Pixie Hollow which provided the all-important dust that allowed every fairy to fly and perform their unique brand of nature magic. Flying overhead Rosetta noticed quite the commotion. She glided down to find out what was happening.

"Stay back for your own safety," one of the scouts ordered. A large number of fairies from every talent were milling about, whispering and talking about something. Scout talents had formed a large perimeter around the tree keeping every one far away from the Pixie Dust Tree.

"Well what's going on?" she asked him.

"All you need to know is to stay back," the scout replied.

"Let her pass," a gentle, but commanding voice spoke. Queen Clarion bade Rosetta to her side.

Rosetta joined the queen who was floating alongside the ministers. The queen spoke. "A large and angry snake has slithered its way into the Pixie Dust Tree," she said. "It is holding several helper talents and dust keepers hostage inside while keeping the rest of us at bay."

Rosetta was horrified when she heard the news and more so when she caught a glimpse of the enormous snake that had wrapped itself several times around the branches and trunk of the precious tree.

The round bodied snake was a long and slender creature with a length guessed at about four and one half meters or about fourteen feet. Its head appeared to be coffin shaped with a pronounced brow ridge over medium sized eyes. The scales were a khaki like color. One animal talent fairy said that it had gotten a good look inside its mouth which appeared inky black.

No animal fairy had ever seen such a specimen as it was not native to Never Land or England. When any fairy, animal talent or otherwise made an attempt to move in close the snake would strike at it. Only the nimble flying of the fairies kept them alive. Animal talents had tried repeatedly to speak with it, but none could understand its strange hissing which was far different from any snake language commonly spoken on Never Land Island.

"Where is our most talented animal fairy," the queen asked. "Rosetta, you are her friend. Where is Fawn?"

 **~O~**

Mermaid Lagoon. Here the titular mermaids gathered to sun themselves on the rocks and splash around in the shallows. Often times Peter Pan would come and tell them stories about his adventures on the mainland or how he defeated the pirates who came to Never Land searching for treasure.

On the cliffs nearby was a waterfall. A stream wended its way to the lagoon where it met its end in the waters of the lagoon where the mermaids played. The fall was not very tall to a human as it was only about twenty five or thirty feet in height, but to a fairy barely the size of a human hand it was as frightening and deadly as Niagara Falls was to humans.

Here Fawn had brought a canoe made by the tinker talents. It was carved from strong wood and polished inside and out to a perfect shine. Fawn rode the waters downstream to the cusp of the falls. In her hands was a two sided oar which she used to paddle faster and faster to her destination. Upon reaching the precipice Fawn thrust her arms and the oar high into the air like a champion and screamed at the top of her lungs, "YEEAAAH HA HA!"

Then she and her little canoe plunged over the edge and down the deadly falls.

* * *

 **Thank you for your patience. I've had the worst writer's block. I hope you enjoy this new chapter.**


	17. Chapter 17

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **A Disney Fairies / Once Upon A Time Crossover**  
 **Season 1, Episode 15, Chapter 3**

* * *

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

Rosetta searched high and low for Fawn. There was not a sign of her friend along the banks of the stream that led to the falls. She called out Fawn's name, checking with every woodland creature she could find. Though she couldn't understand their language they could understand hers and with nods of a head no one knew where to find the little sprite.

One little bird, though motioned towards the waterfall.

"She went down the river?" Rosetta asked.

The bird nodded yes.

"Where is she? What happened to her?"

The bird pantomimed what it had seen. Fawn rowed a canoe down the river and over the falls. Rosetta screamed in terror. Her friend had drowned. Maybe, just maybe Fawn survived. She shot over the cliff and searched along the water's edge to find the little animal fairy.

"FAWN! FAWN, where are you?"

"Over here."

Confused, Rosetta flitted over to the rocks where Fawn was sitting with the mermaids. Fawn had been telling them how she went over the falls and managed to survive both the tumble and going into the water. "It was exhilarating," Fawn gushed. "I've never felt so alive in my life. I can't believe I've never tried anything like that before."

"Oh, I'm so glad you're not hurt," Rosetta burbled, wrapping her arms around Fawn with excitement and relief. Then it suddenly dawned on her what had been said to her. "Wait, you intended to go over?"

"YES! It was fantastic! Why don't you come with me the next time?"

"Are you crazy? What possessed you to do such a dangerous stunt?" Rosetta barked, angry.

"Oh, Rosetta, my life has been so tedious lately," Fawn told her. "Every morning I wake up, feed the animals, teach them to fly or to sing or to forage, then I wake up the next day do it all over again. There has to be more. And this is it. Today is just the beginning."

"Well put it on hold, Fawn," Rosetta scolded. "We've got a crisis at the Pixie Dust Tree. A huge snake has wrapped itself around the trunk and trapped the dust talents. Queen Clarion needs you to talk to that thing."

"BO-ORING!" she responded dismissively. "Oh, my wings are dry. Thanks for helping me out of the water," Fawn said to one of the mermaids. She lit off back towards the island.

"Where are you going?" Rosetta called out as she chased after her.

"To do something else amazing. Wait. I know. The Hawk. I'm going to outfly the Hawk and make him eat my pixie dust."

"WHAT!? No! You can't do that. Fawn, not even Vidia can outrun that thing. You'll be killed."

"Exactly! What's the point if there isn't a real sense of danger? This is living!"

 **~O~**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Jo pulled up to the Kensington house, a nice looking two story Tudor style which Jo surmised was an older house. "Hmm…, probably built before modern building codes were established," she assumed. "Might be pier and beam with a shallow crawlspace. Could be chiggers, spiders, fleas, ticks, roaches, rats and other things living under there. Well, good thing I'm a pest control specialist."

Mrs. Kensington, a middle aged woman with golden brown hair, deep blue eyes and a fit, toned body greeted her. Jo knew of Mrs. Kensington from the high profile case involving her daughter after Thanksgiving last year. She concluded that the woman was either a fitness nut or was dating someone. It was a broad assumption, but one that had been proven right more often than not in Storybrooke.

"Hi, I'm Jo. You said you had a rat problem?" she said in place of a proper greeting.

 **~O~**

"There," Claire told the young woman. She showed the pest control agent the hole inside the kitchen and then the one outside where the rat was gaining entry to the house. Jo found a vent to the shallow crawlspace and shimmied under the house. Sure enough she found a ground populated with various insects and arachnids, all of which scurried away as she belly-crawled around floor joists, water pipes and gas lines. When she got near the kitchen Jo flashed a light and saw the long, pink tail of a rat disappear up into the walls of the house. Based on the locations of the water and sewer pipes she guessed that she was lying directly under the kitchen.

Jo shimmied her way back from underneath and exited the same way she went in. "Yeah, I can see where he's getting in. I'll take care of it."

The young woman extracted a humane trap from her truck, baited it and placed it in the crawlspace where the rat was last seen. The bait was made to be highly enticing and within a matter of minutes it snapped shut with the captured rodent inside. During the short wait Jo had managed to convince Mrs. Kensington to let her spray under the house for various insects. "When it rains heavily sometimes the roaches and spiders will get inside the house to stay dry."

That was more than enough and Mrs. Kensington signed on the dotted line authorizing the work. After extracting the trap with the live rat in it Jo pumped heavy dose of powder underneath the home to control the populations of every kind of pest that lived underneath the Kensington domicile.

"What will you do with the rat?" Claire asked.

"I'll release him into the forest outside of town," Jo replied.

"But won't it just come back into town?" Claire asked.

"Don't worry," Jo reassured her. "One of the nice things about rats is that they don't hold grudges."

As the two were conversing the minivan pulled into the driveway. Vidia had dropped off Tina at school this morning and then Penny at her house. She was now quite the expert driver and was most comfortable behind the wheel. When the young brunette disembarked from the vehicle she strode up to the front door. She spied the truck and was immediately reminded of what Claire had told her this morning. A rat had been in the house last night and she had called an exterminator to get rid of it.

Vidia saw Claire speaking with a younger female who appeared familiar. She had a slightly woody brown complexion to her skin, dark brown hair, brown eyes and freckles on her cheeks. "Fawn?"

Both Claire and the exterminator stared at her.

"What?"

"Fawn. I mean, uh. Hi," Vidia stated trying to not look too foolish. "You sort of look like a, uh… a fawn."

Jo stared back in disbelief. "Okay. Well…, I've never heard that one before."

"So, is that the rat that was in the house last night?" Vidia asked.

"Yup. I'm releasing it back into the woods," she told Vidia.

"Yeah, that is definitely our Fawn," Vidia mumbled to herself.

Claire paid Jo her fee and thanked her for being so prompt.

 **~O~**

The exterminator was true to her word. She drove out towards the city limits and released the rodent into the wild. "Why don't you find a nice fast food diner to populate?" she told the furry, grey creature. "Uh…, just not Granny's Diner. I like to eat there. Try a KFC store. I hear chicken is supposed to be good for you. Well, maybe not you in particular, but I mean that it is better than beef. Easier to digest, lighter, less fattening… well, you know what I mean."

The rat, not caring to hear anymore of Jo's ramblings, stuck its pink tail in the air and charged off into the woods to look for food and shelter.

"You're welcome," Jo called out after it.

On her way back into town the exterminator stopped at the feed store and picked up an assortment of food for various animals. The feed, which ranged from mealworms to birdseed was for her collection. Jo volunteered part time at Storybrooke's animal shelter. However, the shelter had only so much space for injured and recovering animals so she began taking in some of the poor creatures and feeding them regularly until each one healed enough to return to their natural habitat.

It had started out as a simple act of kindness and mercy. A rabbit here, a ferret there, a couple of birds, a lizard. Soon the collection ballooned into almost any kind of creature that was in need of a home. In her backyard the garage had become her own private animal sanctuary. Neither her work truck nor her private vehicle could fit inside anymore. Today Jo was feeding and caring for more than fifty five specimens of injured or homeless animals.

Chester, her boyfriend, had often complained about the animals more from a financial standpoint than anything else. "Eventually the cost of feeding and caring for all these critters is going to exceed your income. And that's not even counting your other costs like food, clothing, city services and taxes or even business costs."

He even made the argument that animals die as part of nature's cycle to keep populations under control. "Does anyone complain when the lion kills and antelope?"

She refused to listen, rebuffing him with lines like, "Does that lion sound like James Earl Jones?"

As Chester often said, _her heart was usually bigger than her wallet_. For a time Jo allowed her animals to roam freely through the house, however, Chester would have none of it and refused to move in with her unless she caged or freed the animals she cared for.

Chester refused to cave into her pouting, her arguments or even her tightly balled up fist which she sometimes displayed when nothing else worked. Eventually Jo relented and now all of her precious little "fuzzy wuzzies" lived in the environmentally controlled garage. That was one thing she would not give in on. So she and Chester spent time making what was once a home for the cars into a home for the animals. When they finished the project Chester mused that it looked like a Disney movie gone wild.

Jo pulled up to the garage and flung open the door with her bags of feed and announced, "Mommy's home. Who wants din-din?"

 **~O~**

Vidia was surprised to find that Fawn, of all people, was working as an exterminator and pest control specialist. Despite this she at least knew of one more of her friends here in Storybrooke and added it to her growing list for Henry and his Operation Cobra.

Claire, who wanted nothing more to do with rats, enlisted Vidia to help her patch up the hole in the kitchen that allowed the rat into the house. They also fixed the entry point where the vermin had managed to gain entry into the crawlspace.

"Faw-, I mean the exterminator really just went underneath there and crawled around?" Vidia asked her mother.

"Yes, it was the darndest thing I ever saw," Claire replied. "I wouldn't have the guts to do that without at least an isolation suit and ten cans of bug spray."

 _That is definitely Fawn_.

 **~O~**

* * *

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

Red brought her new friend "Mary" with her to the well to fetch water for the home. When they got the well Red was surprised to find that the well water was a dark crimson. It sickened her, but couldn't understand why it was that specific color.

"Mary," she called to the young woman. "Mary. Mary look at this. Mary?"

When she turned around Red spotted Mary looking down the hill at a most horrifying sight. Last night's hunting party had found the wolf and the animal had gutted each and every one of them. Their entrails were splattered across the ground and the usually gleaming white snow was smeared in blood.

 **~O~**

Later that afternoon the townsfolk held a meeting. All the men who were with the wolf hunting party last night had been slaughtered. People wanted the thing killed and some were more than willing to volunteer to try again tonight.

Granny stepped forward and made her own thoughts known. She told a story of when she was a child. The wolf, a different one, was also plaguing the town. Her father and brothers using wooden pikes had cornered it by the house where she lived. From her bedroom window she looked down upon the scene and watched as the wolf lunged at the men so fast that not one had the chance to scream as it ripped out their throats and gutted their bodies.

Frightened she fell out of her second floor window onto the ground where the wolf spotted her. She was certain she would die, but instead the wolf bit her arm and then ran off. No normal predator would do such a thing. "You can't catch it, you can't kill it. Just let it kill a few sheep until wolf's time is over."

The wolf, Mary learned, only emerged during the four days of the full moon. It killed sheep, and any townsfolk stupid enough to try and pursue it. The people were frightened of it but no one knew how to deal with it.

"Wow, your grandmother is intense," Mary commented. Then she had an idea. The wolf, it seemed, only hunted at night. During the day it slept which left it vulnerable. Red knew where this was going. If they would track the wolf to its den they could kill it and free the village from its nightly terrors. The two women readied gear and prepared to leave the next morning to hunt down their quarry.

* * *

 **Thanks for reading. Reviews are always appreciated.  
**

 **Notes from the author: Jo's comment to the rat about finding a KFC is a reference to a New York City KFC / Taco Bell location that was overrun by rats a few years ago. Her flippant comment to Chester asking if the lion sounded like James Earl Jones is a reference to Jones' role as Mufasa in _The Lion King_.**


	18. Chapter 18

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **A Disney Fairies / Once Upon a Time Crossover**  
 **Season 1, Episode 15, Chapter 4**

 _In a previous chapter I wrote that Emma had run across David in the forest when he acted strangely. I had to go back and change it to Mary Margaret after reviewing the episode and noting my error. It is a minor plot point in this chapter. Apologies._

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Henry was aiding Ruby in her efforts to find a new job. They two were at the Sheriff's office as he read through the newspaper's want ad. First was bike courier, but Ruby didn't have a bike. Another listing was for the same job, but on foot. Storybrooke was too big for that in Ruby's opinion. There was a waiter / waitress opening available at the fish and chips restaurant, but Ruby absolutely refused to take another waitressing position.

While they spoke the phone in the sheriff's office kept ringing, but would then abruptly stop. Whenever someone called to the station and Emma wasn't there to answer, the phone calls were redirected to either a service or Emma's pager. Frustrated with the constant ringing Ruby picked up the phone and answered it. "Sheriff's Office!" Ruby recognized the person on the line. "No that's not a prowler it's just Pongo, Archie's dog. Give him a treat and he'll go away."

Emma walked in and listened as Ruby answered another phone call and took a message for the sheriff. She was impressed with just how naturally this came to the former waitress. Her telephone demeanor was excellent thanks to the customer service skills she had honed while working at Granny's Diner. Knowing that Ruby was looking for work Emma offered her the position as assistant.

Ruby jumped at the chance.

Since it was around noon Emma asked Ruby to fetch her some lunch while she processed more official paperwork. At Granny's Diner, Ruby placed the order for Emma: a grilled cheese sandwich, fries and a drink. While there she happily flaunted her new job to Granny, proving that she was moving forward in the world. Granny, however, contended that Ruby is still doing the same job and that nothing in her life had changed.

Bitterly, Ruby assessed her grandmother's comment and began to wonder if she is right.

 **~O~**

Mary Margaret arrived at the Sheriff's department and reports to Emma that she had run into David Nolan out in the woods and that he seemed dazed. Emma decides to go and find him. Henry has concluded that Ruby is Red Riding Hood and suggests that Emma take Ruby with her.

"What? Is she a real bad ass?"

"Yeah," Henry says in agreement. "She can be a big help."

As soon as Ruby returned with the lunch order Emma took the food with her and invited Ruby to help find the missing Mr. Nolan.

Ruby is understandably excited to finally be doing some real police work.

 **~O~**

* * *

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

Rosetta flitted back to the Pixie Dust Tree as quick as her garden talent wings could take her. She rushed up to Queen Clarion and explained what was happening. "Something is very wrong with Fawn," she told the regent. "She only wants to do things that are life threateningly dangerous."

At first Queen Clarion assumed that Rosetta was exaggerating. Fawn was known around Pixie Hollow as a tomboy who took risks and liked to get dirty in her work. The garden fairy gave a thorough accounting of what Fawn had done at the falls. She had become a more extreme version of her usual self.

"Where is she now?" the monarch asked.

Rosetta couldn't blurt out her answer fast enough. "She's going to race the hawk."

The queen, her ministers and anyone hovering nearby who heard this pronouncement gasped in terror.

The Minister of Spring squealed in response. "Ahh! She's out of her mind!"

Clarion, however, immediately took action. She ordered Vidia and all the fast flyers to rescue Fawn from the hawk and return her to the Pixie Dust Tree at once.

"Dearie, why should I put my wings on the line for that crazy fairy?" Vidia asked snidely.

Queen Clarion could have simply replied with "because I am your queen," but she knew that wouldn't work with Vidia. She would have to appeal to her vanity. "If you don't, 'dearie,' there will be no more pixie dust. If there is no more pixie dust then none of us can fly and you will have to be content with being the fastest fast walking fairy on the island."

That got Vidia's attention. Vidia was far too proud of her status as Pixie Hollow's fastest fast flyer and she wasn't about to give that up. Walking was for humans and lowly fairy guilds like the tinkers. She gathered every fast flyer and together, with Rosetta leading the way, they lit off to rescue Fawn. That is, if the hawk hadn't gotten to her first.

 **~O~**

* * *

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

Morning. Red and Snow White, who was going under the name "Mary," were scouting the snow covered countryside for their prey. The wolf, which had been terrorizing the village, was asleep during the day and they had chosen the daylight hours to try and find its den and slay the beast. This pleased Red who was desperate for an adventure. Particularly one that her grandmother did not know anything about.

"What about this?" Mary asked.

Red looked at the tracks in the snow. "No, that's a snowshoe rabbit," she informed her companion, pointing out the telltale pattern.

Mary found another set of tracks, but that was a dog. It was far too small for such a large animal as the wolf. Red knew what to look for and seemed to know how to find it, though she couldn't quite explain why. Quickly she found the prints of their quarry, massive paw prints in the snow. They were so big that they dwarfed any other footprint, even that of a human female such as themselves.

"How big is this thing?" Mary gasped upon seeing the huge indention in the snow. To make matters worse the space between prints was enormous. Longer than the stride of even the tallest man. Though frightened by what they were seeing, the pair of women still followed the widely spaced tracks through the otherwise beautifully snow covered landscape. For some strange reason the tracks were leading them in a huge circle, as if going back to Red's home.

Then suddenly the giant paw prints changed. "Look," Mary pointed out. One print had the heel of a wolf, but the toes of a human foot. The two looked at each other with astonishment. This was not an ordinary forest creature. It was a werewolf.

Red and Mary continued to follow the now human footprints as it led them directly back to Red's house. The trail ended right below a window. A window that opened to Red's bedroom.

"Who's been here recently?" Mary asked. There was only one answer to that question. Peter, the young man Red was smitten with. It was clear now. He was the wolf.

 **~O~**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Jo didn't want to, she loved them so much. However, she did promise Chester that any animal in her sizeable menagerie fully recovered was to be released back into the woods where it was meant to live. She knew it had to be done. Intellectually Jo kept telling herself that wild animals were meant to be free, but Jo had become so emotionally attached to each and every one of her "precious babies" that it was extremely difficult for her to part with any them.

She noticed that each animal had its own unique personality and special quirks. One lizard always checked the surroundings before eating. Two birds kept "fighting" for her attention when she walked by their cage. A bunny twitched its nose in the cutest way whenever she talked to it. These little traits endeared them to her most deeply. Releasing them made her feel like a mother being forced to abandon her children.

"Okay, Randolph," she said to the lizard, "you be good. And don't cross the road when there's traffic. Look both ways. Mimi, find a nice, warm burrow and stay there for the winter," she said to the bunny. Jo said her goodbyes to every animal she was here to release into the wild. It became a truly tearful affair and Jo very nearly put every single occupied cage back into her truck to bring the creatures back home.

Finally, with her heart breaking in two, she opened each cage one by one and let the animals free. Breaking down into sobs Jo watched each of her "children" run into the forest and disappear among the deep green foliage. "Stay safe!" she called to them. "Don't forget to write."

"Who shouldn't forget to write?" Ruby asked.

Jo turned around and spotted Emma and Ruby walking down to the rocks where Jo was situated. "Oh, uh, I was releasing some of my babies," she answered.

"Babies?" Emma asked, confused and concerned.

Jo explained what was happening in full. Emma reminded her that keeping that many animals on her property without a permit was a city code violation.

"We're busy right now, but if I find a zoo at your house later I'm going to issue a citation," the sheriff said. "We have an animal shelter for a reason." The two women then shuffled off to find David Nolan.

Ruby stopped for a moment to regard her friend and reminded her, "You do know that animals can't write?"

Jo turned a faint shade of red in her embarrassment. "So, what are you two doing out here?"

Ruby told Jo how she was now working for the Sheriff's department. "We're looking for David Nolan, have you seen him?"

Jo shook her head no. "But I hope you find him." Jo wanted to help but she had a few more animals at her house to release now thanks to Sheriff Swan and her "city code violations."

 **~O~**

Emma and her new assistant stepped carefully across the uneven ground. They had been following tracks which matched David Nolan's shoe prints when suddenly Ruby stopped. "I can hear him," Ruby said.

"Hear him?"

"Yeah, can't you?" Ruby suddenly dashed off, bounding across the boulders and moss covered ground following a sound only she could perceive. Emma tried keeping up. Moments later the two of them found David Nolan in the river. Sheriff Swan remembered this place. It was where Mary Margaret had found David when he first woke up and escaped the hospital several months earlier.

Mr. Nolan is barely conscious and cannot remember how he got here or what he did since leaving the Sheriff's office last night.

"You don't remember anything?" Sheriff Swan asked.

"No. Not a thing," David Nolan replied.

An ambulance was called to bring David to the hospital for observation and possible treatment. Emma than congratulated Ruby for finding David so quickly. "How did you do that?" she asked the girl.

Ruby, for the first time thinking about it, replied, "I don't know. I just did it."

 **~O~**

* * *

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

Fawn was hiding amongst the leaves. She had been spying on a nest where a hawk was feeding its young. She smiled, gleefully admiring he bird's gigantic wing span and razor like claws. Slowly, she crawled across one branch to another, carefully moving closer to the predatory bird.

Finally, when she was in position Fawn launched herself from her hiding place. "Hyah. Ha ha ha. Catch if you can!" she yelled to it. Fawn bolted out as fast as her wings could beat. The bird lit off from its perch, chasing her.

Fawn turned, taking the massive predator into the pine forest where she led it on a chase through the lower branches. The heavy foliage prevented the bird from taking a direct path behind her and instead had to navigate around the branches. Though less nimble than a fairy it was significantly faster and kept up despite having to fly a greater distance to cover the same ground.

The animal fairy then turned upward, flying straight towards the sky. The bird followed her, flapping its huge wings as hard as it could to keep up. It not only managed to do that, it slowly gained on Fawn. When the hawk was close enough it began to snap at her, attempting to grasp the fairy either in its beak or talons.

That's when Fawn changed direction again. This time she angled earthward, flapping her wings to aid the gravity that was pulling her down. The hawk followed, pulling its wings in close to its body and diving on the fairy. This time Fawn was not capable of keeping her distance. In a steep dive the hawk greatly outmatched the speed of any fairy outside of the fastest fast flyer.

Fawn squealed with great delight, not truly realizing just how close the hawk was getting. She had no sense of her own mortal danger and took no concern as the hawk drew upon her faster than expected.

Vidia, the fast flyers and Rosetta came up on this scene, watching as the hawk closed the gap with frightening speed.

Rosetta cried out with horror. Fawn was going to be a hawk's meal in just seconds.


	19. Chapter 19

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **A Disney Fairies / Once Upon A Time Crossover**  
 **Season 1, Episode 15, Chapter 5**

* * *

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

Even before Rosetta could screech out another word the fast flyers, led by Vidia, began their rescue. The hawk was diving down on Fawn, who was cheerfully oblivious to the danger she had put herself in. Talons opened up and began to embrace its prey. Suddenly purple clad flyers shot between the raptor and the fairy, briefly upsetting the hawk and securing the animal talent from a sure death.

The fast flyers yelled and screamed and called out ugly names to their mortal nemesis. Vidia was the most vocal letting the most noxious insults fly. The fast flyers buzzed around the predatory bird giving it far too many targets and keeping the angry raptor off balance. This strategy worked giving other fairies the time they needed to arrive on the scene and pelt the giant avian with nuts, seeds, sticks and pebbles.

The hawk, finally dissuaded from pursuing the little pixie, turned and flew back to its nest. Vidia, content with her accomplishment, watched the terrifying raptor run from their well-orchestrated trap with a wry smile on her face. She sniffed and huffed snidely at the bird before remembering why she was here.

"Are you out of your mind?" Vidia roared at Fawn.

"What do you think you're doing?" Fawn bellowed back with equal ferocity. "I was having fun!"

"Fun?" Vidia repeated, stunned by Fawn's description. "You were about to become a meal for that thing."

"Leave me alone," Fawn yelled back. "You're not my mother."

"Then get yourself killed for all I care," Vidia answered, summing up her feelings on the matter. The fast flyer suddenly become confused because Fawn actually looked like she was considering what Vidia had just acerbically suggested.

"Okay!" Fawn then stopped beating her wings, folding them perfectly flat against her back and letting her body freefall back to earth.

 **~O~**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Dr. Whale examined David thoroughly and concluded that David's strange "sleepwalking" was similar to what happened to Mr. Nolan when he first woke up and exited the hospital. David had no recollection of going out to the forest or even speaking with Mary Margaret earlier that day.

"Even when he was sleepwalking?" Emma asked the physician.

Dr. Whale explained that a person when sleepwalking can perform any variety of tasks including driving a car or holding conversations. This left David wondering if maybe he had indeed made that phone call to Kathryn without knowing it.

Maybe he even killed his wife.

"We don't know that," Emma said trying to calm his fears.

Regina stormed into the room, angry at what she was seeing. "Where is his lawyer?"

"What are you doing here?" Emma asked the mayor. Apparently, Mayor Mills was still David Nolan's emergency contact number. Emma was taken aback, but as Regina snidely reminded her Kathryn was missing.

Sheriff Swan clarified that David didn't need a lawyer because he wasn't under arrest. However, this did not satisfy the mayor who insisted that David answer no more questions without proper representation. Regina hurried Emma out of the hospital telling Emma that her first priority was to find Mrs. Nolan.

Infuriated, Emma called up her new assistant at the office and told her to return to the old Toll Bridge and look for anything strange that might help the case.

Ruby was not certain she was up to the task, but Emma knew she could do it. "What you did out there earlier was amazing," Sheriff Swan told her. "You can do this, Ruby. You're ready."

 **~O~**

* * *

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

"You think this wolf-man is me?" Peter asked. He and Red were sitting by a tree as snow gently fell all around them.

Ruby didn't put it that way. In her view the wolf was just using his body. Red smiled, now that they knew the truth they could go away and be together. "We just have to tie you up during Wolf's Time with rope."

"Not rope," he replied. Peter grabbed some chains and offered them to Red, a more secure method of keeping Peter from getting killed or killing others.

 **~O~**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Jo was returning from her second release of animals for the day. She crossed paths with a beat up yellow VW Beetle with Ruby behind the wheel. Confused that her friend was using the sheriff's car Jo did a hard U-turn and chased down the aging VW. Ruby pulled over at Jo's insistence.

"Where are you going?" Jo asked, having honked her truck's horn to get Ruby's attention.

"I can't stay and talk," Ruby answered in a most apologetic voice. "I'm on police business."

"Need a hand?"

Ruby thought about it for a moment. Sheriff Swan had told her that Ruby she was capable of doing this on her own, but having a friend, and an extra set of eyes, would be helpful. "Yeah, follow me."

 **~O~**

* * *

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

"Time to lock up the house," Granny said addressing Red. Red was napping in her room, covered in her cloak. "Mary is still outside so she'll have to take her chances with the wolf."

When Red turned over Granny discovered that it was Mary and not Red she had been speaking to. Mary explained that the wolf was also a man and that man was Peter.

"You think Peter is the wolf?"

"Yes, but don't worry, Red is with her."

"What?"

"It's okay. He's tied up."

Granny became horrified. "Oh you stupid, stupid girl."

 **~O~**

* * *

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

Vidia was dumbstruck as Fawn allowed herself to fall helplessly to her own certain death. Rosetta was absolutely right about this fairy. She had become a danger to herself. Vidia dove, flying alongside the freefalling animal talent. "What are you doing?"

"Trying to see how close I can get to the ground before I have to pull up," Fawn answered.

"If you misjudge you'll die," Vidia pointed out angrily.

"Yes! Isn't it exhilarating?"

 _Exhilarating? Is that how she put it?_ Enough was enough. That snake wasn't going to unwind itself. Vidia wrapped her arms around Fawn and tried to carry her to a soft and safe landing. Fawn fought back, pushing Vidia away, shoving, kicking and punching at the fast flyer.

"I'm going to knock some sense into you one way or another," Vidia scolded. Then Fawn wrapped her own arms around the purple clad fairy. It seemed that was going to give up, but Vidia was dispelled of that idea instantly. Fawn had not only taken hold of her, but she had taken hold of Vidia's wings as well, pressing them flat against her.

Now both girls were careening wildly towards the ground. "Let me go!" Vidia protested. Now she was the one who was struggling against her captor.

"Don't fight it, Vidia," Fawn told her. "You've always loved thrills, well this is the ultimate thrill."

"I'm not going to let you kill me," Vidia howled with bitter contempt. The ground below raced up to meet them as they got closer and closer to it. Finally Vidia separated herself from Fawn. But they were now too close to the earth and Vidia took hold of Fawn's leg trying to pull her away from a nasty end.

It was too little too late and the fall ended when they plunged into the dirt and plowed across an open field. The other flyers quickly attended to Vidia who was shaken by the ordeal but otherwise unhurt. "It's okay," she told them. "I landed on something soft."

That "something soft" was Fawn who crashed into the earth at an angle thanks to Vidia's intervention. Yet despite what seemed like a small mercy still left her unconscious and unmoving. Rosetta knelt at her side, gasping at the sight of the lifeless body of her friend.

 _Not again!_ Rosetta screamed in her mind. "Fawn? Fawn! Are you okay? Speak to me. Fawn?"

* * *

 **I may not get another chapter uploaded before the 25th so I would like to wish everyone out there a safe and Merry Christmas.**


	20. Chapter 20

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **A Disney Fairies / Once Upon a Time Crossover**  
 **Season 1, Episode 15, Chapter 6**

* * *

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

Fawn remained unconscious throughout the night and no one knew when she would wake up. Queen Clarion, after hearing what happened through Vidia ordered that all fairies were now grounded to conserve pixie dust. Mouse carts became modes of public transportation. If flight was necessary to cover long distances doves provided the means.

Everyone was ordered back to work, but without their precious dust very little could be done effectively. Queen Clarion told them to do their best. The snake which still wrapped itself around the Pixie Dust Tree slept on the second night. The trapped dust keepers silently escaped their prison and brought as much pixie dust as they could carry.

At least one situation had been alleviated. No more hostages, but the tree was still a prisoner to the infiltrator and the all-important dust was still beyond their grasp. The queen's residence was within the giant maple at the center of Pixie Hollow. For the time being Clarion had found herself evicted. Her close friend and confidant Fairy Mary took her in.

Despite the tense situation that continued at the heart of their world, Mary and Clarion still managed to carry on like a pair of old roommates. They laughed, joked and swapped old stories. Most they had each heard before, but hearing them again made the night pass less painfully.

 **~O~**

* * *

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

The wolf howled in the night. Granny and Mary walked towards the sound. "You knew?" Mary asked.

As it turned out, Peter was not the beast that stalked the night. Red was the wolf and Peter was tied up like a meal laid out as a sacrifice.

Granny herself had been a werewolf, although with age her transformations stopped. However, she was still able to track like a wolf, which was how she was able to locate her granddaughter.

"I had hoped that Red would be spared the curse. She wasn't. I paid a wizard a handsome fee for that cloak to keep her from turning every full moon."

Mary was frightened by all of this, but she continued on with the elder woman. Red, wolf or not, was still a friend. As they got closer to where Peter was chained up to a tree, Granny raised a crossbow with a silver tipped arrow. The only weapon that could stop Red in her wolf form.

By the time Granny and Mary reached the tree where Peter was chained up it was too late. Peter was dead and the wolf was devouring his body, tearing flesh from his bones and leaving only pools of blood and a few uneaten body parts.

The wolf heard Mary approaching and attacked. Granny fired her crossbow striking the ferocious creature in the chest. It felled the beast just as she said. Mary draped the cloak over the motionless form of the wolf and it quickly returned to Red's human form. When she awoke Mary took up the awful task to inform Red of her tragic mistake.

"Peter wasn't the wolf," she said with great sorrow.

"Me?" Then it dawned on her what might have happened. A glance at the tree and she knew. Red had indeed murdered the only man she had ever loved. Killing him like the predator she was. She broke down crying at the revelation.

In the distance, another wolf hunting party grew near. Their voices got closer. Granny instructed the two girls to disappear into the woods. "I'll take care of them," she said as Mary and Red made their escape through the trees.

 **~O~**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

They reached their destination where Ruby and Jo began searching the banks of the shallow river that ran under the Toll Bridge. Jo took one side while Ruby took the other.

"What are we looking for again?" Jo asked.

"Something that doesn't fit in," was Ruby's best guess. She called up Sheriff Swan to get some clarification. With Emma's help Ruby started tracking down something. Ruby didn't know how or why she could do this, only that she was doing it and very well.

"I think I found something!" the new sheriff's assistant called out to Jo. The young Latina female ran across the clear, flowing waters to join her friend. Ruby informed Emma of what she was doing. A few yards from the water's edge was an old piece of driftwood, partially concealed by dirt and rocks. It should have gone unnoticed but for some reason Ruby was able to spot it with great ease.

With Jo hovering over her Ruby lifted the plywood and found a shallow hole that had been dug out. Inside was an ornate jewelry case. Ruby put the phone down explaining to Emma what she had found.

"What are you going to do?" Jo asked. Ruby didn't answer with words. Instead she pulled the box from the hole and lifted the lid. What was inside so horrified her that she screamed. Jo didn't utter a sound. Instead she ran to the nearby wooded area and vomited violently before bursting into tears.

 **~O~**

Back at the Sheriff's Office, Emma examined the contents of the jewelry box. It was a human heart, cut out of its victim and carefully placed inside that box. She told Ruby she had done a good job finding it, though it was clear Ruby didn't care to have ever found such a horrific thing. She quit her job as Emma's assistant and returned to the diner, contritely asking for her old employment back.

"What about lemurs?" Granny asked.

"Emma was my lemur," Ruby noted. "I don't want a job where having a good day means ruining someone else's." The young girl was forced to apologize for what she had said earlier. Her fear wasn't that she would turn into her grandmother, but that she didn't know how to be the same strong, capable and driven person as her grandmother.

"Well that's why I wanted you to work weekends," Granny told her. Granny knew she couldn't work at the diner forever and now she wanted to prepare her granddaughter for the day when she passed it on to her.

Ruby was stunned by this announcement. "Me?"

"Well who else am I going to hand it over to but someone I trust. Someone who loves this place as much as I do," Granny said, offering a subtle compliment.

Ruby was flattered by her grandmother's faith in her. She smiled and gratefully returned to her work as a waitress and business owner in waiting.

 **~O~**

* * *

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

It was days before Fawn woke from her second head trauma. The nurse said that the accumulation of two in such a short span of time contributed to her longer recovery. When the little animal talent finally did open her eyes the pain in her head was intense. Her head pounded, as if a tinker fairy was bashing it with a hammer nonstop.

Fawn could not think clearly. Her thoughts and memories were muddled. Bright lights hurt her eyes, sounds pierced her eardrums and made her aching head feel like it was about to explode. She noticed that her whole body hurt, in some places more than others. The left arm was in a sling while her right hand was outfitted with a splint on two fingers.

She had never felt worse. The doctors and nurses kept a close watch on her recovery. Queen Clarion visited with Fawn briefly to ascertain when she could deal with the snake that was still wrapped around the Pixie Dust Tree.

"A snake, huh? Uh…, yeah, I can take care of it for you," Fawn replied cheerfully.

Clarion spoke with the doctors to find out when Fawn could be moved. It would be a few more days. They were well aware just how desperate the fairies were, but Fawn's life and long term mental health were at stake. "Move her too soon, Your Highness, and she won't be able to do a thing to alleviate your current difficulty."

"Understood," she answered. When Clarion returned to Fawn's bedside she told the young girl to take her time. "But please do hurry. I don't know how much longer we can live with that snake in the Pixie Dust Tree."

Fawn was surprised. "There's a snake in the Pixie Dust Tree? When did this happen?"

Clearly she was not yet ready to perform this duty.

 **~O~**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

That afternoon Chester arrived home. The day was grey and overcast which made the intense Maine winter all that much colder. He noticed not a single critter in their cages. When he went inside he found Jo sitting in the center of a darkened living room. The shades had been pulled closed, the lights had been turned off and not even the television set was on. There was only Jo and the shadows which surrounded her.

"Jo? Are you okay?"

Chester clicked on the lights in the room and found his possessions stacked in the center of the space. "What's going on?"

"It's not going to work out," she told him, not even bothering to look his way. "It's best you leave now."

Chester was greatly confused by this. "Not going to work out?" He sputtered out incoherent mutterings before finally asking, "This isn't about the animals, is it?"

Jo remained oddly silent.

"Say something." Chester sat down on the sofa next to her. He took her hand and found it cold as ice. The look on her face was of stark terror. "What happened?"

"The animals are all gone," she finally managed to mutter. "Emma said I had to get rid of them."

Chester was most concerned. Her voice was almost a monotone, as if she were in shock. Her body was stiff and almost lifeless as she spoke her words.

"I'm so sorry," Chester said with much empathy. He knew how much those animals meant to her. They were like an extended family. "Couldn't you reason with her?"

"No." Tears began to well up in her eyes and then slowly crawled down one cheek and then the other. He assumed it was all about giving up her precious animals. But he felt that there was something more to this.

"What's going on? What are you not telling me?"

"I can't say," was all she could offer him in response. It was obvious she wanted to tell him, even with her cold stare and emotionless facial expression.

"You can't say? Not a word?"

"The sheriff said I couldn't?" For the first time her voice began to break up.

"Because of the animals in our yard?"

"No. Something else. Something much worse."

He pleaded and begged for her to tell him, but she was too stricken with grief and shock to say anything. And Jo adamantly repeated that Sheriff Swan didn't want her to say anything. The only clue she gave him was that it involved Ruby.

Then, quite suddenly, she grasped him in her arms throwing them around his torso. "Hold me," she whimpered. "Don't go." Chester could feel her trembling. Jo, a normally fearless and stubborn woman was frightened. Scared out of her wits. It caused Chester so much alarm. Despite all of his possessions standing in the middle of the room, leaving Jo was not an option.

 **~O~**

* * *

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

Fawn woke from a deep sleep. She kept dreaming about a large and ravenous snake which gobbled up Queen Clarion and then the other fairies of Pixie Hollow one by one. Fawn couldn't let that happen. When no one was looking she slid out of her bed, changed into her usual attire and snuck out of the hospital. "I have to talk with that snake," she muttered to herself. "Before something very bad happens."

The pain in her head still throbbed and her body ached everywhere. The sling on her arm slowed her while dressing and the two fingers in the splint stung if too much pressure was applied. None of that mattered. Fawn was the only one who could successfully talk with the invader.

Among each talent are a variety of specialties. Almost like talents within the talent. Each fairy tends to excel at one or more of these specialties. Among the tinkers inventiveness is an admired special ability within the talent. With animal talents linguistics is a valued ability. All animal fairies can communicate with every animal in Never Land. They know the languages of each creature, can understand each one perfectly and every animal fairy is capable of speaking the varied languages perfectly and without an accent.

Fawn could empathize, care for, teach and nurture as well as anyone, but she was especially gifted when animal linguistics were involved. She had the ability to learn and grasp new languages better than any fairy within her own guild. This was why Queen Clarion sought her out when the snake was initially reported. Other animal talent fairies tried to speak with and learn the snake's unusual speech, but all eventually failed, giving up after not making any headway or from the constant threats of being eaten alive.

 **~O~**

"What's she doing?!" Rosetta asked when she spotted her friend winging towards the Pixie Dust Tree. "Oh no, she's going to get herself killed! Just like before!"

"Quickly, stop her!" Clarion ordered her scouts to capture Fawn and return her to the hospital, but they were too late. Fawn alighted to a tree branch, barely a safe distance from the snake. It saw her and spit its fury at the little fairy.

"Fly or be eaten," he hissed.

"I don't feel like being eaten today," she answered him. Fawn's head throbbed so badly. The shine from the pixie dust combined with the bright sunlight only made it worse. She could barely think, but she was determined to press on. Pixie Hollow and every fairy living there were depending on her.

* * *

 **Thanks for reading.**


	21. Chapter 21

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **A Disney Fairies / Once Upon A Time Crossover**  
 **Season 1, Episode 15, Chapter 7**

* * *

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

"Who are you?" she asked of the snake.

"I am what will make you my dinner," it hissed back. At least that's what it sounded like.

"We can't understand you very well," Fawn told him.

He hissed something which didn't quite make sense. Fawn decided to proceed with her plan. "I'm going to teach you our language while I learn yours." The snake narrowed its eyes and watched as she floated to some leaves. Realizing that she had to be precise, Fawn took her hands and gently ran them down the outline of the leaf. "Leaf," she said slowly. "This is a leaf."

Fawn then rubbed her palm against its center and said. "Green. This color is green."

The snake said nothing, but watched her intently.

The little animal fairy patted her hand on a tree branch. "Branch." Then she rubbed her palms against it and spoke. "This color is Brown."

Finally the snake responded. "Brown?"

"Yes. Brown."

Then he spoke the word for brown in his own language. Fawn smiled. "It's a beautiful word."

 **~O~**

For several hours Fawn carefully listened. The awful pounding in her head made it extra difficult. Night fell which helped somewhat, but without the bright daylight of the sun the glow from the pixie dust became especially intense. Fawn had to look away from it regularly to keep the pain in her temples from becoming totally unbearable.

Slowly the two exchanged words, phrases and complete sentences. She learned to speak his unique dialect while he fully grasped the language of the fairies. Fawn developed a working knowledge and used it to learn more about him and where he was from. She never once pressed the giant snake for any discomforting information. Though he regularly threatened to eat her, Fawn was making this fearsome creature her friend.

By mid-afternoon the next day Fawn was able to report her findings. "He's a Black Mamba," she told Queen Clarion, "a very poisonous and deadly snake from Africa."

"Africa?" The queen was shocked by the news. "How did it get here?"

Fawn relayed what she had learned. Humans trapped him, apparently to bring the specimen to England for a display. Possibly a zoo. The ship he was on was overrun by more humans, which Fawn assessed to be pirates. One of the pirates tried to make this snake its pet, but it killed him and several others before the poisonous creature was thrown overboard to sink and die.

As luck would have it, the cage opened upon impact with the water and the snake climbed onto some drifting wood, a remnant from the battle to repel the pirates. The flow of the ocean then brought him to Never Land. For several days the snake had moved silently about the island looking for food when it came across our tree.

"All it wants is to go home," Fawn told her queen.

Clarion nodded. Unfortunately, the fairies had no way of transporting the beast back to its own world. "Perhaps he will be comfortable living here."

"No, he won't," Fawn replied. "He admits to his own predatory instincts. Your Highness, I fear keeping him among us would be like inviting the hawk to do the same. It will begin to eat us, he cannot be anything other than what he is."

The queen sighed with a measure of disappointment. "Understood."

 **~O~**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

The next morning Jo woke still feeling depressed by what she had experienced the day before. It wasn't giving up the animals but finding a human heart in a box by the stream that gnawed at her. It seemed impossible that anyone could do anything so vicious. To murder a person, cut out there heart and place it inside of a box before hiding it by the water's edge.

She was still so struck by the moment that it never occurred to her why someone would place the heart in a box and hide out there. Chester had stayed the night with her, never leaving her side. Though they slept in the same bed overnight Chester did not take advantage of Jo in her weakened state. Instead he chose to stay close to her simply so she would have someone to offer her comfort and companionship during this trial.

Jo began to voice regret that she had rid herself of all the animals. Any critter healthy enough was released into the wild. Those still too ill or injured were taken to the animal shelter even though they didn't have enough room for all of them. They were like family to her and right now that is what she needed.

Despite this emptiness Jo never once sought to bring in new animals. Chester reasoned that forming new bonds would take time and Jo needed those emotional ties right now, not a few weeks or months from now. So Chester went to the shelter and offered to bring the overflow back to Jo's place. It was a small number. The ones she loved most were what he chose and the surprise of seeing those happy, fuzzy faces back in their cages lifted Jo's spirits immediately.

Jo changed her mind and decided it was okay for him stay, if he wanted. Their arrangement would stay the same, he would sleep in the guest room while she took the master. There was one thing that did change between them. The romantic relationship they had shared dissolved. Instead, they would live together as close friends sharing the house like roommates. At least until Jo could get over the shock and trauma she had experienced.

Chester, while disappointed, was more than willing to accept this. "I'll never leave you, Jo," he told her. "I'll always be here for you, no matter what."

 **~O~**

* * *

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

Fawn wracked her already throbbing head for an idea. She had wanted to help the snake, which she had dubbed "Sir Hiss," to find his way back to Africa. One idea, which tinkers Clank and Bobble suggested, was that a large cage could be built and he would be flown by doves to a ship heading to Africa.

While the idea seemed sound on paper, there was no guarantee he would survive the trip back to his home in Africa. Many of the other captured animals who joined him on the journey to England didn't survive the trip because they were far too stressed from suddenly being captured and placed in small cages. Hiss didn't think he could survive another long voyage.

"I'll go with you," Fawn offered. "It will give us a chance to get to know each other even better."

The snake thanked Fawn for the offer, but he declined. "I cannot ask you do such a thing," he said. "No, I am without a home."

"Maybe not," Fawn told him. "Maybe you can't live among the fairies, but Never Land is a large island. I'm sure you can find a place here to call home."

Sir Hiss liked the idea somewhat. He decided to go with Fawn and search for a comfortable and isolated location where he could reside. In doing so he relinquished his control of the Pixie Dust Tree, much to the delight of the fairies who desperately needed its magic dust.

It took several days, but Fawn and Sir Hiss eventually found a nice, out of the way place where he could live in peace. Hiss would be alone, but Fawn promised to visit him regularly.

"Thank you, dear fairy," he said to her. "None have been so kind to me."

"I'm glad to have you as my friend," she told him. "See you tomorrow."

 **~O~**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

That evening Sheriff Emma Swan received the DNA report on the heart. She had taken it to the hospital lab and asked them to put a rush on it. Knowing that this was part of an important ongoing investigation, the lab complied.

She found David and Mary Margaret together at his place of employment, Storybrooke's animal shelter. The two were waiting and consoling each other in the lobby of the shelter when Emma walked in and announced the findings.

"The heart belonged to Kathryn," she told them.

Those words hit them both like a Mack Truck. Mary Margaret began to sob and David squeezed her hand as he thought about his now dead wife. Realizing that he must have been the culprit, having murdered here while in a sleepwalking state David prepared to turn himself in.

"There were also fingerprints in the box," she told them. "But they're not yours, David."

"Then who?" he asked

"Mary Margaret." Her fingerprints were found on the box, thus implicating the schoolteacher as the murderer. Sheriff Emma Swan immediately put her under arrest, read Ms. Blanchard her Miranda rights and took the shocked woman to the jail house to be booked and processed.

 **~O~**

* * *

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

"How are you feeling, Fawn?" Rosetta asked.

"Much better now," she replied to her garden fairy friend. "Wow, I can't believe all the crazy things I did when I wasn't myself."

"You had us all worried, shoog. So what are you going to do now?"

"I need to deal with that mean squirrel," Fawn said. "Is he still hold up in the tree?"

"No, he's gone," Rosetta told her. "I couldn't wait forever so I had some of the other animal fairies talk to him. He kept throwing nuts at everyone until there were none left. With nothing left to eat he abandoned the tree in a huff."

"Huh! I wonder where he is now."

 **~O~**

Somewhere in a remote part of Never Land Island a squirrel bounded through the underbrush. He had been run out of Pixie Hollow by the others of his kind. This squirrel only wanted to take what belonged to others. He had no desire to collect his own nuts and find his own place to live. Why bother when it was easier to just sit back, let the others to the hard work and then take it from them.

But those naughty fairies wouldn't let him live his way. So now here he was on his own, looking for an occupied squirrel home to claim by force. He found a nice place which was filled with nuts and ripe for the taking. All he had to do was evict the current owner and it would be his new home.

What he had not counted on was that the owner was not the sweet or timid sort. The squirrel that lived here was used to living without the benefit of the fairies of Pixie Hollow. He was very capable and didn't rely on the kindness of others to defend his home.

It was a short conflagration with the invader being ejected most unceremoniously onto the forest floor. The squirrel chittered and chattered many unkind things at the other squirrel. He tried again, and again he was repelled by the knothole's current resident. Hoping the third time would bring him luck he tried once more.

This time he was bopped in the head with nut and fell to the ground with a thud. The noise rousted a new resident. A snake with an inky black mouth. A Black Mamba snake named Sir Hiss. Hiss offered a warning to the squirrel, "Go away or I will make you my meal."

The angry squirrel was not impressed by the snake's display of its large, black mouth and sharp fangs. He screamed and chattered at the snake. Then he took the same nut that had been used against him and flung it at Sir Hiss.

Hungry and angered, Hiss reared up and struck, following through on his threat.

* * *

 **Okay, this brings to a close episode 15. Thank you for reading.**

 **If anyone is still reading.  
**


	22. Chapter 22

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **Season 1, Episode 16, Chapter 1**

* * *

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

"There he is! The king wants him alive!"

They had found him. Prince James was talking to Ruby, a young lady in a red cloak. Ruby had once been Snow White's friend for some time and offered what information she could to the good prince. As they were talking a garrison of King George's men came across their position and charged at them across an open field.

King George wanted James captured for what he had done. James, formerly a sheep herder named David, was "adopted" by King George to replace David's twin brother the real Prince James. The real James had been lost on the field of battle as King George was negotiating an alliance with King Midas. George's kingdom was bankrupt. Midas, the man who could turn anything to gold, was willing to fill George's coffers if Prince James could slay a dragon.

After David, posing as James, had managed to complete the feat he was introduced to Midas' daughter, Abigail. Midas wasn't just looking for someone to rid his kingdom of a great threat he was looking for a man Abigail could marry. David, however, met Snow White while he was trying recover a ring she had stolen that was to be a gift to Abigail.

Snow, who was now living as a bandit and a wanted criminal in the eyes of the Evil Queen, nicknamed him "Prince Charming." At first it was meant to be an ironic turn of the phrase since she did not find him at all charming at their first meeting. However, as their adventure continued she began to warm up to him. Neither recognized it at first, but Snow and Charming had developed a chemistry which would eventually manifest into true love.

Unfortunately, George refused to allow David to renege on his and instead tried to force David to marry Abigail. The king even went so far as to threaten David's life if Snow White didn't convince David she never loved him. David, unconvinced and unwilling to live a lie with Abigail, abandoned his adopted father and set out on a course to locate Snow White thus destroying what had been a carefully constructed, but very delicate alliance.

King George's vengeance knew no bounds and despite having almost no money left he sent out his armies to locate and retrieve his "son" to exact his revenge. Now they had found him and his quest nearly met an untimely end. Ruby, however, knowing the story behind Charming and Snow White intervened on David's behalf.

"Run," she told him.

"What are you going to do?" David asked as he leapt to his mount.

"Hold them off."

It was evening. The sun was nearly setting and a full moon hung in the sky. Ruby, who transformed into a monstrous wolf during the full moon threw off her enchanted cloak, becoming the fearsome wolf. Now in her bestial form Ruby charged the garrison sinking her fangs into the lead officer. They tried to stop her. Swords, arrows, spears, pole arms, none of it was effective against the magical beast form of Ruby.

The only sound James heard was Ruby's wolf howl followed by the pained screams of the soldiers she ripped to shreds. He was grateful for her intervention, but he also felt a great sorrow for the men who died on the field that day just to satisfy their king's lust for revenge.

 **~O~**

While Charming continued his search, Snow White was dealing with a conflict of her own. An inner conflict brought on by a magic potion.

The dwarfs had secretly arranged and intervention. She hadn't been the same since drinking the potion Rumpelstiltskin had provided. It made her forget Prince Charming, but it also turned her into a mean and unbearable woman. Even her closest friends, the dwarfs, could no longer tolerate her increasingly antagonistic behavior. They read off a list of things she had done to them.

She had brought hay into the cottage which made Sneezy's allergies worse.

"You're allergic to _everything_!" she spat at him.

"You broke my mug," another dwarf complained.

"You're lucky I don't break that mug you have for a face!" she screamed back.

The same dwarf snarled, "You are the meanest, most nasty-!"

"Look what you're doing to Happy!" Grumpy observed cutting into the discussion before a fistfight broke out between Snow and the most endearingly, cheerful member of their group.

"Your anger towards the queen is understandable," said Jiminy Cricket, who was conducting the intervention. "But you shouldn't take it out on your friends."

"You're right," she said in agreement. "I should be taking it out on The Evil Queen."

Snow bundled up against the harsh winter conditions, grabbed a dwarf axe and exited the home of her hosts. She was determined to find out where the queen was at this very moment so she could give the woman a proper execution.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

A very timid, but confused Mary Margaret blinked, protecting her eyes. The camera flash was incredibly bright. She stood before a wall with markings denoting height. She was being booked for the murder of Kathryn Nolan. She couldn't understand why her roommate Emma was doing this to her.

"Look, I believe you," Sheriff Swan told her. "But if I don't do this by the book Regina will fire me and hire someone else who _will_ railroad you."

Ms. Blanchard sighed. Emma was right, but all of this made no sense. She was being set up. Ms. Blanchard couldn't do something as horrible as commit murder, cut out a woman's heart and bury it in the woods. It was all so unbelievable as if had been lifted out of an old, gruesome fairy tale.

Emma told her to just sit tight. She was going to conduct a thorough investigation and find out what really happened.

 **~O~**

At the Kensington home preparations for Tina's upcoming birthday party were nearing completion. A guest list had been written, notices had been sent by email, the cake had just been delivered and presents had been wrapped sitting neatly on the dining room table. Claire even helped Valerie pick out an appropriate gift.

" _Mythbusters_?" Valerie asked. This set was the entire 2010 series on DVD. "Are you certain?" She had seen a few episodes of the show on television and found the science behind it only fitfully interesting. Mostly she preferred anything involving speed, flying or both. Reruns of the Red Bull air racing series had caught her attention as did NASCAR, Indy Car racing and motor cross racing.

"Oh yes. It's one of her favorite shows," Claire replied. "Along with _How It's Made_ and _Modern Marvels_."

Now the last of the preparations were going up in the house. A chime at the door signaled that Hartley Winter had arrived. He was carrying one of the items Claire had requested, a piñata in the shape of the popular Tinker Bell character.

"Oh it looks wonderful," Claire gushed. "Was it hard to find?"

"No, not really," Hartley responded, lying. The piñata itself wasn't exactly a common sight in Storybrooke. With Penny's assistance, Hartley found a company that made and safely shipped the large, hollow doll. It arrived undamaged and looking quite realistic. "She is going to love it. Did you also pick up the candy and party favors?"

Penny followed close behind with bags full of candy, noisemakers, horns and hats. "Right here!"

Claire took the bags and hurried into the kitchen where she carefully filled the piñata with the various types of candy Penny had brought. Despite the cold weather, the only place for the piñata was outside. Hartley took some rope and flung it over a stout branch. Here he could hang the candy laden papier-mâché doll, raising and lowering it as party goers took swings at it while blind folded.

Everything was ready and Valerie was sent to pick up Tina from school. The house looked perfect. The living room was cheerfully decorated in colored paper garlands, streamers and balloons. Even a large, silver sign which read "Happy Birthday" hung from the ceiling just in front of the stairs.

Shortly after Valerie left Clarence showed up at the door. He was the last guest to arrive. Claire's tight budget dictated what could be spent and how many people she could invite. Aside from Valerie and herself there was Penny, Hartley and Clarence, the boy Tina had been dating on and off lately. Claire winced at just how small a group Tina's friends were, but took some solace in knowing that her friends were very close to her. Quality over quantity, she told herself, that's what really mattered.

* * *

 **~O~**

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

The night was chilled. A lone knight of Regina's kingdom walked his patrol among the towering trees of the forest. Moments later he was knocked to his back by a vicious hit from an enraged woman. A woman with a face he knew all too well: Snow White.

This had once been her kingdom. Snow's mother and father ruled with a wise, gentle hand. Then Snow's mother died and her father married the young Regina. Years later Snow's father died, assassinated by two snakes from a distant land. Regina inherited the throne and became queen. Infuriated by something Snow White had done to her earlier Regina hired someone to kill the young princess, but instead Snow escaped and was forced to live life on the run.

Now she was back to take revenge on Regina, the woman who had ruined her life.

Before the knight could move, Snow White took the axe in her hand and drove its head into his kneecap nearly breaking it. The pain was so exquisite that he felt it throughout his entire body.

"Where is the queen?" she demanded of him.

He refused to tell this fugitive a thing. Then she began to tell him that the axe she held was no ordinary tool, but held a special enchantment.

"This is a dwarf axe," she said. "It can, incredibly, cut through anything including diamonds. Now imagine what this could do to soft, human flesh and brittle bones."

The look on her face was enough to convince him that she wasn't kidding. Torn between his loyalty to his queen and the base need for survival his emotions warred over what to do. He made up his mind in the half second it took for her to raise the dwarf axe into a powerful swinging position.

"She'll be leaving for the summer palace in a few days," he told her, desperate not to suffer terrible, painful, inhuman mutilation at the hands of this woman and the magical axe.

"That palace was built for my mother," she said angrily before knocking the man unconscious.

 **~O~**

Snow White took his clothes and left the man bare naked on the cold ground. Grumpy, who had followed her, tried to convince Snow White not to pursue this course action. "That potion changed you!" he told her. Then he suggested that Snow White go back to Rumpelstiltskin. Perhaps he could help offer an antidote.

"He's the most powerful man in the world," he told her. "He can do anything."

"Anything?" she asked, thinking how she might use this man to her advantage.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Sheriff Swan brought Ms. Blanchard to a makeshift interrogation room where they found Mayor Regina Mills waiting. Mayor Mills insisted on being present to ensure Emma remained impartial.

Emma informed Mary Margaret that the heart had been cut out with what appeared to be a hunting knife and buried near the Old Toll Bridge.

"Have you ever been there?" Emma asked Ms. Blanchard.

"That's where David and I liked to meet," Mary Margaret replied.

Emma showed Ms. Blanchard the box that heart was found in. Mary Margaret was floored. This was her jewelry box. Now more than ever Mary Margaret was convinced that this was a setup. Someone had to have broken into the house to get it.

Regina tried to offer her condolences. "I know what it's like to lose someone you love," she said. "It changes you, makes you different." Her words, though, insinuated that Mary Margaret was the murderess.

"But I haven't changed," Ms. Blanchard responded.

Emma asked to speak to Mayor Mills out in the hallway. She wasn't happy with the way Regina was goading and leading Ms. Blanchard. Mayor Mills reminded Emma that Ms. Blanchard told them that someone had to have broken into her house to steal the jewelry box.

"She's your roommate, Sheriff," Mayor Mills said with a sly smile. "Has anyone broken into her home?"

Emma knew that answer to that question. It also gave her a new direction for her investigation. One she didn't like for many reasons, unless it helped to acquit her friend and roommate Mary Margaret Blanchard.

* * *

 **~O~**

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

"Terence?" Fairy Gary called out. His best dust keeper had been missing most of the day. Earlier Gary had to break the bad news to the boy. Terence would no longer be his assistant. Fairy Gary had wanted to train an assistant who would eventually take over when Gary decided it was time to retire. Terence was his choice.

The boy dove into the project with his usual enthusiasm, perfectionism and attention to detail. He was the very best apprentice an overseer could have. But it came at a disastrous price. His romantic relationship with Tinker Bell collapsed. Terence ignored her during Tink's worst crisis of confidence yet. Not wanting to see their relationship fail utterly, Fairy Gary had to rescind his offer hoping to make Terence wake up and realize just where he was going wrong.

Since then only two people had seen him. Viola, whom Terence enlisted to fetch Tinker Bell so he could apologize and Zarina. Zarina had been teaching her unique sub-talent, pixie dust alchemy, to willing students. Terence, Pixie Hollow's best dust keeper, had been helping her. He had gone to inform her he would be taking time off so he could save his romance with the little tinker fairy he loved so much.

"I'm sorry, Fairy Gary," Zarina told him. "He left some time ago. Viola was supposed to summon Tinker Bell but she never showed up. Terence went to look for her."

Gary then spoke with Viola. She had found Tinker Bell at her home in Tinker's Nook. So that was where he went next. As a courtesy Gary went directly to Fairy Mary, the Tinker Guild overseer, to ask permission to speak with Tink at her house.

"By all means," she said approvingly.

Tinker Bell was different even among her own kind. Unlike the other tinker fairies who lived in houses made of gourds and pumpkins, she chose to reside in a house fashioned out of a broken tea pot. It was inverted with the cracked bottom covered with a leaf made roof that had been sealed with tree sap and bound with stem twine. This was in line with Tinker Bell's fascination with the humans who lived on the mainland.

Fairy Mary knocked on the door of Tink's abode. "Tinker Bell. Fairy Gary wants to speak with you."

Nothing. Not a sound.

"Tinker Bell?"

The presence of two guild overseers did not go unnoticed. Clank and Bobble, Tinker Bell's closest workmates, drifted closer. "Anything we can help you with?" Bobble asked.

"Oh no. We're just here to see Tinker Bell."

Bobble mentioned that her light was out, which usually meant Tink wasn't home.

"Do you boys know where we can find her?" Fairy Mary asked.

"I'm sorry, Fairy Mary, we haven't seen her all day," Bobble replied.

Clank then observed, "Now that I think about it, I don't think we ever saw Ms. Bell leave her house this morning."

Fairy Gary surmised that Tink was still sulking, choosing to remain in the dark creating an environment that would match her mood. Fairy Mary carefully opened the door to Tinker Bell's teapot home.

"Tinker Bell? Are you in there?"

"She's gone," a young man's voice answered. Someone was in her house, an invader hiding in the shadows.

Fairy Mary took hold of the light rattle that was kept next to the door and shook it, exciting the rocks inside to glow. The illumination, while not strong, was enough to reveal a male form sitting in the corner of the house. Gary approached and discovered his identity.

"Terence? What are you doing here?"

Terence stared blankly into the air. In his hand was a paper with writing on it. Gary took the page to read it, then handed it to Fairy Mary.

"Oh no," she gasped upon scanning the page. "This can't be."

"She's gone," Terence repeated. "And it's all my fault."

* * *

 **Thanks for reading. Your generous feedback is always appreciated.**


	23. Chapter 23

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **Season 1, Episode 16, Chapter 2**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Emma Swan was searching her own home. Following up on what Regina and Mary Margaret told her the sheriff was checking Mary Margaret's residence looking for any sign of a break in. The door was unscathed and locked, none of the windows looked damaged or forced. It seemed that the house was secure.

Turning around Emma was surprised to see she had a visitor, "Henry?"

"We have to help Ms. Blanchard," he told her.

Emma explained what she was doing, trying to uncover proof of the schoolteacher's innocence. Unfortunately, she found nothing. There wasn't a single indication that an intruder had forced his or her way inside the home. Frustrated, Emma flopped down on Mary Margaret's bed which was covered in frilly pillows and thick blankets.

Moments later the HVAC switched on and warm air began circulating. Accompanying the sound of the air flow was a slight rattling sound. A rattling which caught both Emma and Henry's attention. Emma determined that it was coming from below the floor. She pinpointed the source and lifted the heat register that was in the center of the floor. Emma reached into the duct and removed an object that was wrapped in cloth. Unwrapping the object revealed something shocking: a hunting knife, not unlike what was used to cut out Kathryn Nolan's heart.

Emma Swan had set out to prove Mary Margaret's innocence, but instead she had only succeeded in tightening the noose. No matter how this looked, the sheriff could not believe it. Emma had spent a good deal of time in this place and got to know the woman quite well. Mary Margaret didn't seem like the kind of person who would own much less have a need for a large hunting knife.

Unfortunately, whether or not Ms. Blanchard was the type was irrelevant. The knife had been found in her home. And not just found, but hidden as if trying to conceal the bitter truth. That was all that would matter to a judge or jury. And as sheriff, since she found the knife it had to be introduced as evidence. To hide it would not only betray her ethics, but also her responsibilities as a peace officer.

The irony was not lost on her.

 **~O~**

Henry was heartbroken. He knew more than anyone that Ms. Blanchard was innocent, but the evidence piling up against his schoolteacher was immense. He went to Granny's and ordered a cup of hot cocoa with whipped dairy topping and cinnamon sprinkled on top.

A man, tall and scruffy, wearing a leather jacket and blue jeans entered the diner and sat down next to him. It was the tall stranger, the man who inexplicably rode in on a motorcycle a few weeks ago. Storybrooke never had visitors. Emma was the first, but that was to be expected as Henry had fetched her. But this man was different. He just showed up one evening out of the blue. And that was truly out of the ordinary.

The tall stranger, whom Emma had identified as August W. Booth, told Henry that whatever was bothering him, the solution wouldn't be found at the bottom of that cup of hot cocoa. Instead he pointed to the thick tome Henry carried around with him.

"They're just stories," Henry told him.

"Yes, but these stories really happened."

Henry was stunned. Did this man really believe?

"Some people could believe with simple faith," August told him, "but Emma needs proof. That proof could only be found in that book."

Henry was energized by these words. The boy immediately flopped open the _Once Upon A Time_ storybook and began to read. The page opened to a story with Prince Charming trying to track down his lady love, Princess Snow White.

* * *

 **~O~**

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

Prince Charming had tracked down someone. The prints in the freshly fallen snow were obvious. They belonged to some poor soul walking about naked in the freezing weather. Charming offered him a blanket to keep warm. This unfortunate man was a knight of Regina's realm. He had the misfortune of crossing paths with a vicious, bloodthirsty woman named Snow White.

Charming took offense, leveling his blade at the man's throat. "That's not her," he said.

"Then maybe you don't know her as well as you think."

 **~O~**

Snow White and Grumpy had reached The Dark Castle wherein the dwarf expressed his displeasure with Rumpel's potion. "It changed her," he said.

"Well of course it did," the imp replied. The potion could not erase her memory of the man she loved without erasing something else: her capacity to love. Without it she had given into her most base and negative desires. Previously, these negative emotions were held in check by her kind hearted nature, which was driven by Snow's immense capacity for love and compassion. Now, nothing held them back and thus they surfaced unhindered, driving her every decision.

Rumpelstiltskin also informed the dwarf of something else. "I can't restore it. True love is the most powerful magic in the world. It's something I've been able to capture. Anyone who can bottle true love can do anything." Rumpel looked wistfully at his shelf of bottled potions. There was one empty spot labelled "love."

"But that's not why you're here is it, dearie?" he said addressing Snow White, who up until now appeared totally disinterested in the conversation.

"No. I want to kill the queen," she said in an intense and straight forward manner.

"Now _that_ I can help you with," Rumpel said with a grin on his lips and a twinkle in his eye. He presented her with a bow. Any arrow fired from this bow would always find its target. Snow, however, didn't understand how she could use this as long as Regina was in her castle.

"No, no, no. You use it when Regina is on the move to her summer palace." He even showed her a map detailing the best place to lay an ambush where the caravan would be most vulnerable while offering good cover for an assassin.

Snow couldn't believe her luck, but she knew Rumpel well. "Everything comes with a price with you," she began, "what do you want in return?"

"Nothing," he said.

"Nothing? There has to be something."

"Let's just say, I'm invested in your future."

Snow was willing to accept this bewildering explanation and took the enchanted bow. Grumpy, horrified, told her that if she were to continue on her fateful quest he wouldn't accompany her.

"I always planned on doing this alone," was Snow White's harsh reply.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

"Heat register? Emma, I don't even know where the heat register is?" Mary Margaret whimpered. Emma had just informed her about the hunting knife and where it was found. Emma was well aware that this seemed all too convenient, unfortunately no judge or jury would care. The evidence neatly left a trail leading to the school teacher.

"Perhaps I could be of service," a familiar voice said.

To Emma's shock she found Mr. Gold in the Sheriff's Station. He was here to offer Ms. Blanchard his legal services. "I wasn't aware you were a lawyer," Emma said.

"Why do you think I'm so good with contracts?" he answered, thus confirming his status as practitioner of the legal arts.

Emma disliked the idea of Mr. Gold assisting Mary Margaret. Mr. Gold, however, did point out that when he was charged with beating a man nearly to death he was able to persuade the judge to drop all the charges against him. Emma was unimpressed as she was certain Gold simply threw his considerable weight around.

Mary Margaret saw it differently. While she trusted Emma to find the real culprit, until that moment arrived she was in desperate need of legal advice and chose to accept Gold's offer.

"I can't pay you," she told the pawn broker.

"I didn't ask for money," he replied.

"You always want something in return," Mary Margaret commented.

He replied with, "Let's just say, I'm invested in your future."

* * *

 **~O~**

Emma was disconsolate. This new development left her very uneasy. No one should trust the pawn broker Mr. Gold, least of all Mary Margaret Blanchard. She returned home to find Henry once again, this time he offered her something. A ring of old fashioned keys of the type used more than one hundred years ago. He confessed to having stolen them from his mother's office.

"This is how my mother did it," he announced. "This is how she broke into Ms. Blanchard's home."

Now why would she do that?" the sheriff asked in reply.

"Because she hates Snow White," he informed her.

"Yeah well the courts are going to need more than just 'she hates Snow White' as a motive."

Henry wasn't one to take no for an answer and began trying the keys. None of them fit the round hole in the aged lock in Ms. Blanchard's front door.

"See, kid? They won't fit," Emma pointed out. Henry asked her try, picking out a specific one and holding it out for her. Emma, hoping to dispel the boy's belief in fairy tales, took the key and inserted it into the key hole. She turned it and heard the tumblers fall into place. The door swung open, unimpeded. Sheriff Emma Swan was stunned. Suddenly the investigation had taken a severe left turn and Regina was the new suspect.

* * *

 **~O~**

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

Prince Charming barged into The Dark Castle demanding to know what Rumpelstiltskin had done to Snow White.

"It wasn't me, it was you," the imp taunted. Rumpel painted a sordid picture in which Snow White came to him to relieve the intense pain she felt because she could not be with Charming, the man she loved. "I gave her a potion that made her forget," Rumpelstiltskin finished.

"Well it changed her," Charming stated. "Change her back."

"Oh I can't do that," the imp said, repeating this a second time. "But there is a way. True love's kiss can break even the most powerful spell," Rumpelstiltskin reminded the prince.

"Where can I find here?"

"She's on the way to the queen's road," Rumpel said, magically unfurling a map which detailed the location and the fastest way there.

"What do you want in return?" Charming asked defensively, remembering how he came to be a prince and then hunted by King George.

"Your cloak," the dark creature said. "It gets drafty in here."

It was an equitable trade in Charming's mind. A cloak for the means to rescue Snow White before she did something she would regret. Then Rumpel added something else before Charming left.

"Remember this, if you fail then Snow White will become as evil as the person she kills."

That was all the prodding Charming needed. He took the map and raced towards the queen's highway to stop Snow White and restore her memories.

* * *

 **~O~**

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

"Is he still searching?" Queen Clarion asked.

Fairy Mary sighed. "Yes. Poor boy. Terence is convinced Tinker Bell leaving to be with Peter Pan is all his fault. He has spent every waking off hour searching Never Land for her."

The elite scout fairy Nix arrived with a report.

"Where is Terence now?" Clarion asked. Worried for his safety, and state of mind, Clarion had a small contingent of scouts follow Terence wherever he went even as other detachments of Scout Talents also pursued the same goal of trying to locate Peter Pan's secret hideout and Tinker Bell herself.

Rosetta had once been a sidekick to Peter Pan years earlier and was aware of his hiding place. Unfortunately, when Terence found the location it was long abandoned. Pan, who was engaged in a running "war" with Captain Hook, had moved to a new hiding place after Hook had located this one a few years prior.

Terence's ultimate goal was to bring Tinker Bell back to Pixie Hollow. Queen Clarion, however, only wanted to know where she was and that her best tinker fairy was safe.

"He has taken a balloon carrier and is currently scouring the coastline of Never Land Island."

Fairy Mary groaned. "Oh dear. The island is so big. Terence could spend years searching and never find Tinker Bell."

"Has Periwinkle been informed yet?" the queen asked.

"No," Fairy Mary answered. "Rosetta and the girls have decided not to say anything in case Tinker Bell decides to come back or Terence finds her. They don't want to worry Periwinkle unnecessarily."

"Understood. But I don't think we can wait much longer," Clarion said. "If Tinker Bell's location is not determined soon Periwinkle will have to be told."

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Vidia pulled up to the school and found Tina waiting at the curb. She loaded up her usual book bag along with a small canvas satchel and some kind of box. "What is all that?"

Tina climbed into the minivan and groaned. "Homework," Tina grumbled. "This semester I've been placed into some kind of new class: Life and Family Planning. That box is an electronic baby."

Vidia was astonished. "Babies are electronic now? When did this happen?"

Tina explained that the "electronic baby" was a specially made doll to help teenagers learn what is involved in caring for an infant. Beginning at midnight tomorrow morning the "child" would activate and act just like a real baby. It would cry, need to be fed, act fussy, require burping and diaper changing. Essentially, Tina and her classmates would discover the true burdens of parenthood from this doll.

"It has an internal sensor pack to record when and how it is receiving care," Tina said. "Our grade will be based on the results from those sensors. If the baby is shaken too hard, ignored, dropped, isn't fed or changed, carried incorrectly or suffers trauma my grade will fall. If the baby 'dies' or is 'severely injured' while in my care I'll get an F. Each doll is Wi-Fi enabled so the teacher can monitor our progress on a daily basis."

Vidia could only say one word in response. "Wow!"

"Yeah, no kidding. The stupid thing even comes with its own diapers, a bottle and a Bjorn that interact with the internal systems so it knows when it's being changed, fed or carried. Basically, my life is going to suck for the next two weeks."

"Who came up with this idea?"

"I don't know. Some idiot politician with too much time and money and not enough brains. At least that's what Mom says."

"Hmm..., maybe she should run the schools."

"God no! Then I'll never have any peace."


	24. Chapter 24

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **Season 1, Episode 16, Chapter 3**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

At the mayor's office, David speaks with Regina. He assures her that Mary Margaret is innocent claiming that he knows her well enough to know she isn't capable of anything so heinous. Regina, though, isn't very receptive to his pleas.

"Everyone has a dark side," she tells him. She speaks as if with the voice of experience. "Maybe you don't know her as well as you think."

Unable to convince the mayor David decides to take a different course of action. Certain that his black outs hold the truth regarding Kathryn's disappearance and Mary Margaret's innocence, David Nolan goes to the office of Dr. Archie Hopper. "Can you help?"

"Of course. Come in, David."

* * *

 **~O~**

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

Snow White has taken position near the Queen's Highway to lie in wait for Regina. While preparing the enchanted bow Rumpelstiltskin provided she is suddenly ambushed from behind. At first she thought that one of the queen's knights had found her. It was someone very different.

"Who are you?" she asked him.

"Snow, it's me. Charming."

"So you're the one I'm supposed to have forgotten," she said gruffly. "With a name like that I'm glad I did."

"I can't let you go through with this," Charming proclaimed. "I'm going to help you remember me." And with that he took hold of her and kissed Snow White passionately.

Stunned, Snow White pushed him away. "What was that for?"

"True love's kiss can break any spell," he elaborated.

Snow White didn't care. She didn't love him and proved it by hitting him in the head with her bow, rendering him unconscious.

 **~O~**

When Charming woke he found himself bound to a large tree trunk with stout rope made from hemp. Snow White had taken his unconscious form a good distance from the Queen's Highway so that he would not be able to interfere with her plans or alert the knights with his calls for assistance.

He begged her to let him loose, but Snow White was determined to kill the woman she believed had destroyed her life. "I can't let you do that," he pleaded. "You can't kill her."

"Watch me." Snow White gathered her things and left Prince Charming to his fate.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Dr. Hopper helped David into a twilight sleep. Here the psychologist would be able to probe David's memory, assisting him to recall the events which occurred during this blackouts. But instead the hypnosis took David back further, to the days when he was Prince Charming in The Enchanted Forest.

The images he recalled were not complete or definitive, but what he did see disturbed him.

"I can't let you do this," he said, pleading with someone. "You can't kill her."

The face he saw in his memories belonged to Mary Margaret. They were in the woods somewhere. He was pleading with her to not kill someone. Not to kill "her." That could only mean Kathryn. This shocked him awake from the trance. The snow covered woodlands David saw in his memories were mistaken for the woods just outside of Storybrooke. The images seemed only indict Mary Margaret rather than prove her innocence. David had to be certain and decided it was necessary to pay Ms. Blanchard a visit.

* * *

 **~O~**

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

Terence refused to believe it. Tinker Bell couldn't be gone forever. In the past several months he went from piling guilt upon himself to full-fledged denial. Or maybe it was false hope sprung from self-delusion. Most thought he had latched onto it to avoid accepting the possibility that she may never return.

"She'll come back," he adamantly told anyone who asked. And a few who didn't. "Tink will come back. She just needs some time to herself. This is her home. Her work is here, her life is here, and her sister is here."

He was here. It was unspoken, but to everyone else it was the most obvious part of his self-inflicted pain. Terence was still here while she had gone away. For so long he and Tink were inseparable. Almost as if they shared the same heart and the same soul. As far as Terence was concerned Tink had to return, so the two halves could be whole again.

 **~O~**

Late evening. The sun had just sunk behind the distant horizon and the crimson sky was turning dark. Points of light peaked through the reddish hues. Terence was resting on a blade of grass looking skyward. The balloon carrier he had been flying was moored not far away, it's line tied to a sturdy branch.

He looked up and wondered. "Tink, I know you're out there, looking up at the same sky, seeing the same stars."

Terence closed his eyes for a moment and prayed to those stars. _Where is she?_ he asked the tranquil pins of light. _Can you tell me where to find her? Is she safe? Will she ever come back?_

And then the one question he hated to ask. Terence buried it long ago when his guilt turned to improbable hope. This question he spoke, but barely a whisper, "Does she even remember me?"

"Of course she does," came an answer. Terence opened his eyes. They darted around wondering if his mind was playing tricks on him.

"Terence."

He turned to where the sound came from and saw the glimmering, shimmering form of Queen Clarion herself. Stunned, Terence bolted straight up and stood ramrod straight. "Your Highness. I wasn't expecting…"

"Please, sit."

He eased himself back to the ground. Clarion sat next to him and stared skyward towards the implacable and silent stars as they hung in the darkening carpet above. For several minutes neither spoke a word.

Then, as if sensing he needed more comforting she spoke. "Tinker Bell hasn't forgotten you," she told the young dust keeper. "I don't think she ever could. You are two have shared far too much together to be so easily erased from her heart."

"But does that mean she'll come back?" he asked her.

Clarion suspected that Terence had been working through his denial and was only now beginning to slowly accept the reality of the situation.

"I would be most surprised if she didn't," she assured him.

He offered her a weak smile. "Thank you, Your Highness, that helps."

She smiled in return and then glided back to the Pixie Dust Tree and her royal responsibilities. Terence looked out across the horizon at the darkening night sky. Tears began to well up in his eyes. Tinker Bell's absence hit him like a ton of pebbles. He cried throughout the night. He never once returned to his home that evening, preferring to avoid the others as he came to terms with the reality of the situation.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Tina arrived home to the sudden cries of "SURPRISE!" The celebration had been planned entirely without her knowledge. Her mood swung from frustration at her homework assignment to joy as she found herself in the midst of her own birthday party.

A wide smile spread across her face. She was greeted with the sight of her best friend Penny. The two shared a big hug. "Thanks for coming."

"I wouldn't miss it," the girl replied.

"Hi," a meek voice croaked. Tina wheeled around and saw Clarence. There was a brief moment of shock to see him here. Recent events echoed through her mind, including the word "pregnant." But she was glad to see him and Tina put all the uncertainness of the past to the side and greeted him warmly. She wrapped her arms around the boy and held on tightly. "Thank you for being here. It wouldn't be the same."

"Hey, you're my girlfriend," he told her. "If it's important to you, it's important to me."

Such reassuring words.

Claire began the festivities by bringing out the cake. It was a delicious looking cake with a sweet frosting. The top of the cake was decorated with flowers that surrounded the words "Happy Birthday, Tina." Seventeen lit candles were carefully arranged with an additional which Claire said was one to grow on."

The small group of revelers sung _Happy Birthday_. At the end of the song Tina blew out the arrangement on the cake. They suddenly flared up again. Claire and the others laughed.

"Trick candles," Tina smiled. Hartley pulled them from the pastry and doused the candles in water while Claire cut the cake into pieces and served it with Neapolitan ice cream. After everyone finished their treat Claire brought everyone outside where Tina found a piñata of Disney's Tinker Bell hanging from a stout branch.

"This is amazing," she gasped. As the birthday girl, Tina was given first crack at hitting the piñata with the decorated stick. She was blindfolded and then allowed to tap the piñata doll with the end of her stick. Hartley waited until she wound up. When Tina swung he yanked on the rope which was tied to the papier-mâché doll, jerking it up and away.

The stick met air and Tina nearly tumbled from the follow through. "Hey!" she groused. She was given a second attempt. The doll was where it was supposed to be. With the next swing, whiff. Again Hartley had pulled the piñata up and away.

Claire felt kind of bad for her little girl. "Okay, why not let one of your guests have a try."

Penny was up next and like Tina before her, each swing whiffed on air as Hartley pulled the piñata away from her. Clarence tried and barely managed to clip the bottom of the doll by feigning his swing. Tina noted it and when she was given her next try after Valerie she faked out Hartley, connecting with a solid whack to the body of the doll.

"Good one, sweetie," Claire told her.

"Oh, so that's what you have to do, huh?" Valerie commented.

Of course, she wasn't the only one to notice. As each participant followed they all managed to get in at least one good swipe at the piñata. Although it seemed totally spontaneous, Claire and Hartley had planned it out from the outset. He would make it impossible for anyone to hit the papier-mâché doll at first. Then he would wait just half a beat before yanking the piñata away allowing each person to make a solid connection on at least one attempt.

Claire didn't want any of the party goers to get too frustrated during the game. She also wanted things to build and get more fun as they went alone while also finishing things up early enough so that the small group could get back inside where it was warm.

Valerie had her suspicions. When receiving the stick she gave Hartley a knowing glance. He made sure to be extra quick on the draw on her first swing. Valerie caught nothing but air and the follow through nearly sent her to the ground. Both Tina and Penny had to hide their giggling, but it was still pretty obvious how tickled they were.

On the next swing Hartley allowed Valerie to hit the doll near the toes. "Hmmph!" she said.

Once Tina got her next turn she took a big swing, but made sure to aim a little higher than last time. When Hartley pulled up on the rope she still scored a solid strike. It was good enough that the side of the doll cracked a bit. On the next swing she hit it again in nearly the same spot, splitting open the doll entirely and contents poured out onto the ground below and the partiers knelt down to grab up all they could before returning to the comfort of a warm house.


	25. Chapter 25

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **Season 1, Episode 16, Chapter 4**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

David Nolan was apprehensive. He wanted to believe that Mary Margaret was innocent, but the evidence, including the memories he had just recalled through hypnosis, were just too damning. At the Sheriff's station he approached the cell that contained Ms. Blanchard and after a bit of hemming and hawing asked quietly if she had indeed killed Kathryn Nolan.

Her response was not what he had expected. Or wanted. "David, when they thought you did it I supported you," she said, her voice filled with betrayal and hurt. "I never stopped believing you were innocent. But now that the tables are turned you actually believe I did it?" Mary Margaret's eyes turned into angry slits that seemed to burn through his very soul.

David tried to explain himself, but she would have none of it.

"Get! Out!" she spat.

* * *

 **~O~**

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

Prince Charming kept wrestling with his bonds, but to no avail. Snow White had done her job securing him to the tree too well. Then a cricket alighted upon his hand and addressed him.

"You can talk?" Charming said, stunned that this little insect was able to speak and with such expert diction.

"Yes, and you can listen," Jiminy Cricket replied. He explained to Charming what the prince already knew. That Snow White was under a spell and was out to murder the queen in cold blood. Charming informed the talking cricket that he had already tried to break the spell with a kiss but that it failed.

Jiminy had an epiphany, which he explained while chewing through the hemp ropes that kept Prince Charming tied to the tree. "Snow won't be able remember who you are until she remembers herself."

Prince Charming pulled on the hemp rope which Jiminy Cricket had weakened. It broke easily and he freed himself from the other bonds promptly. Now that he knew precisely what was wrong with Snow White he could break the spell. But it would mean making a terrific sacrifice.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

"YES! _Mythbusters_ ," Tina exclaimed as she opened the gift from her older sister.

The presents were unwrapped after a rousing game of pin the tail on the donkey which Penny won and was then followed by several rounds of Toss Across, a large scale tic-tac-toe type game that was played with bean bags and a game board with plastic triangles. The object was to toss the bean bags at the blank triangles and flip them to either an "X" or an "O." Hitting the top of the triangle revealed one letter, hitting the bottom revealed the other. Valerie proved to be the best Toss Across player. She chalked it up to being a fast flying fairy with superior agility and body control.

"Oh, yeah. Sure," Tina replied humoring her sister's persistent claim to being a fairy from a Tinker Bell movie.

When Tina unwrapped up the present from Valerie her mood couldn't have been happier. _Mythbusters_ was one of her favorite television shows. She heartily embraced Valerie who was clearly uncomfortable with such displays of affection. Vidia and Tinker Bell were close friends, but not this close.

"Thanks, Val. You're the best. I can't wait until I turn eighteen so I can start blowing up stuff in the backyard."

Claire was suddenly terrified. "Uh, we'll talk about that. Later. Much, much later."

Tina's next gift came from Clarence, her boyfriend. Ripping open the wrapping paper revealed a variable speed, cordless Dremel kit complete with all attachments and tips. "This is awesome, Clarence. Thank you!" Tina had already begun to think about all the things she could do with this set.

From her mother she received something practical. Two sweaters in her favorite color of green for the cold weather. "Thanks, Mom," she said, trying to sound more excited than she actually was.

Hartley presented her with something unusual. "Raspberry PI?"

"It's the latest thing from England," he explained.

"Ooh, I just got one of those, too," Penny said. "They're little credit card sized computers that are great for learning to program or making computer based projects. Hey, we can make robots for a robot rumble, I'll show you how."

Tina was very grateful to Hartley for providing something that would give her an excuse to spend more time in collaboration with her best friend. As if she really needed one.

"Yes. Thank you, dear," Claire told Hartley with a dose of trembling fear. Claire worried what manner of havoc and destruction those two were going wreak on her poor, aging house. At least her most valuable possessions weren't here to be easily broken. They were locked up safely at Mr. Gold's pawn shop.

"Hey, don't forget my gift," Penny said. From under the decorated table she pulled a large gift, wrapped in silver paper.

"Wow! What is that?" Tina asked, shocked.

"You'll have to open it to find out."

Tina rabidly starting tearing apart the delicate wrapping and before she was even halfway done started screaming with sheer delight.

"AAAAAAHHHH! A 3-D printer! I can't believe it. I can't believe it! A 3-D printer."

"Yeah, you can make all kinds of great things with that," Penny told her. Suddenly it all came together for Tina. The Dremel tool, the printer, the Raspberry Pi. All of these things she could use in concert to manufacture and build all manner of interesting and cool things. Some she could even sell and make a bit of money to fund even more elaborate projects.

"But it's not over quite yet," Claire announced. "I have a special surprise, too."

Claire had been holding back. The sweaters were a real gift, but she knew that Tina could hardly get excited about them. She pulled from a hiding place another box which turned out to be a Radio Shack electronics learning lab with more than two hundred projects listed in the enclosed manual. Tina grabbed her mother in a tight embrace, nearly knocking the woman over. "Thank you, Mom," she said without any manufactured gratitude. "I've been wanting this for a long, long time."

"I know dear. I know. You're welcome."

Tina couldn't stop talking about the amazing gifts she had received. She and Penny both lit up as they began laying plans for all manner of mad scientist ideas. Claire was delighted for Tina. Watching her little girl have such a good time was a rewarding moment for her.

Yet deep inside Claire still worried. The recent Miner's Day Festival meant she had plenty of new jobs and the money was enough to pay her bills at the moment and still have enough left over for this party. But once those small jobs dried up it was back to the status quo of wondering where their next big paying contract would come from. More than anything that was what she needed. Claire feared that by early spring their good fortune would run out and she might not be able to afford to pay Mr. Gold his monthly payment.

She knew the extra money should have gone into savings, but Claire couldn't disappoint her little girl. Claire hoped to luck that something good would happen to them and soon.

* * *

 **~O~**

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

Today was the anniversary of Tinker Bell's arrival day. This was the third year since she had gone. Periwinkle was still devastated, but had since recovered enough to function in her daily tasks. She kept up her friendships and more often than not seemed normal. Yet it was obvious to anyone with a sharp eye that deep down Periwinkle was sleepwalking through each day. If she were human, Periwinkle might have been diagnosed with depression.

The day she received the news of Tinker Bell's leaving was the worst day she had ever known. Worse than when she and Tink thought they were never going to see each other again after having been found out by Queen Clarion and Lord Milori.

All of Tinker Bell's friends came to the border that day, sharing the responsibility as bearers of bad news. They showed Periwinkle the note that Tink had written. Periwinkle did not take it well.

"She _is_ coming back?" Peri asked the others. "Isn't she?"

"Oh, shoog," Rosetta began, "I…, we…"

"It doesn't look like she'll return any time soon," Fawn said, finishing the difficult answer that Rosetta couldn't quite get out.

Those words stabbed at Periwinkle's heart. Her own sister had abandoned her. She felt betrayed. "Why? Why did she go?"

Vidia took this one, carefully explaining the situation. It didn't satisfy Peri in any appreciable way. Tinker Bell could have moved to the Winter Woods. The Winter Fairies certainly could have found challenges for her. But that wasn't what worried the little frost fairy most. "Why didn't she bother to say goodbye?"

Say goodbye to her, Tink's own sister. Tinker Bell left so abruptly that she didn't visit to her own kin and explain things. Never gave Periwinkle the chance to wish her sister well, or ask her to visit once in a while. Or give Periwinkle the chance to convince her to stay.

Now three years later Tinker Bell never bothered to come around. Not even a note or letter or something to indicate she was doing okay. Nothing. Periwinkle had come to understand why Tinker Bell ran away. She felt unchallenged, unwanted and unloved. Except she wasn't unloved.

Periwinkle was there. She would have helped out in any way possible. Even gone beyond the possible. That's what sisters do. So many questions left unanswered.

And the biggest one of them all: _Did you not_ want _to say goodbye?_

That is what hurt Periwinkle the most. The thought that maybe Tinker Bell didn't want to pay her sister one last visit before leaving for good.

 **~O~**

"No, this is Tinker Bell's home," Terence protested.

"Now, boy. She hasn't been here in years," Fairy Gary told him. "It's time to let her go."

"No. I can't let her go. I'll never…"

A new fairy arrived last night. Her name was Bangle and she was a tinker fairy. Bangle needed a home and the only one available was Tinker Bell's old house, an upside down teakettle which Tink had fashioned into her home in the months after she arrived.

"Why can't you build another home?" Terence asked, desperately looking to preserve this home for Tinker Bell. "You are tinkers. Isn't that what you do? Build?"

"We don't have the room," Fairy Mary informed him. "Now let us through."

Terence refused. This wasn't just Tinker Bell's old home. It was a shrine. A place of reverence to him. So many great memories were here. So many great moments. He could point to something in this house and recall what happened.

This spot on the floor was where he found the shards of the moonstone that sent him chasing after her.

That corner of the room was where they shared their first kiss as an official couple.

The table over there was where they had romantic dinners together.

The teakettle was more than just a house. It was a home filled with history and life.

It was Tink's home. Forever.

"I know how much she means to you," Fairy Mary told Terence. "But we have to quarter this young lady somewhere."

It took some major negotiations but Terence finally relented. He agreed to let Bangle to live here but Terence insisted that she leave the instant Tinker Bell returned. In addition, he claimed all of Tinker Bell's possessions and moved them into his house near the Pixie Dust Depot.

"Terence, you won't have much room for yourself," Fairy Gary reminded him.

"I have plenty of room," he told his supervisor. He really didn't. Tinker Bell's possessions took up nearly all of Terence's empty space. His home was now cluttered and with barely any space to move. A strange twist for someone considered by his mates to be the neatest neat freak among a guild of neat freaks.

From each day forward, whenever Terence went near or through Tinker's Nook he spied Tink's old house. He thought of that other person living in her teakettle home. He wondered what Tink would think when she came home to find someone else living in her house. What she would say to him for not keeping it empty for her.

More than anything it reminded him that she was gone and probably wasn't going to come home. Ever.

* * *

 **Thanks for reading. Leave a review if you like.**


	26. Chapter 26

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **Season 1, Episode 16, Chapter 5**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

"You have to do what?" Claire asked Tina. The birthday party had been a rousing success. Its small size kept it a pleasant, intimate affair. When festivities ended Tina had to explain where the realistic looking doll came from. Claire's first thought was that it had been a gift from someone who hadn't attended the party. She was aghast to find out it had nothing to do with Tina turning seventeen.

"It's a homework assignment," the teen replied. "For two weeks I have to care for this 'baby' so I can learn what it's like to raise a child."

"What? Why you? Are you pregnant? Tina, tell me you aren't pre-?"

"I'm not pregnant, Mom!" Tina snapped back, angered that her own mother could think such a thing about her. "And it's not just me it's the whole class. Schools all over the country are doing this. Even Maddie and London did it on _Zach and Cody_."

"Who?"

Tina sighed. "It's a television show I used to watch on Disney Channel," she said. " _The Suite Life of Zack and Cody_."

"They put that on a Disney show?"

"Yeah, it was hilarious," Tina said. "Maddie and London kept arguing over who would care for the baby. London is a rich, spoiled brat who lives in the fancy hotel her father owns. Maddie is down to earth and more practical. So anyway, they kept arguing over how to care for the baby until they accidentally tossed it out of the thirtieth floor window of the hotel."

"Oh, well, at least you've done the research." Claire face palmed. As Tina explained it, the assignment involved "caring" for the baby on a daily schedule. Usually just a couple of hours each evening and all day on weekends. This was to prevent the doll from intruding on a student's school hours or study time at home.

Hartley offered some perspective on the exercise. "It's to demonstrate to teenagers the great difficulty of raising an infant," he told Claire. "This country has romanticized sex and pregnancy to younger and younger crowds over the years. Boys have to do it to prove their manhood while some teen girls are forming pacts to get pregnant as quickly as possible without realizing just how burdensome a newborn can really be."

"And that's what this doll is supposed to simulate? Caring for a newborn?"

"Yes, it dispels several myths by presenting a mostly realistic, first hand exercise," he said.

"Does it simulate morning sickness, stretch marks or twenty two hours of the laughably named 'joy' of childbirth?" she asked him.

"No."

"Yeah, well if you ask me the best way to stop teenage girls from getting pregnant is to let them experience what an actual pregnancy is really like. After twenty hours of unimaginable pain followed by trying push a large head through a tiny hole, no one will want to get pregnant ever again."

"Well until that day arrives this is the best we can do," Hartley told her.

"I'm sorry. I just…, I always worry when it comes to my girls," she confessed. "Valerie has always been the stronger one, while Tina can sometimes be more sensitive."

Hartley smiled. "You seem to be doing a wonderful job with her so far."

Claire smiled. "Thanks you." Soothed, Claire placed her head on Hartley's chest as the couple sat and watched a romantic movie on television to end the evening.

* * *

 **~O~**

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

Snow White positioned herself on the rise overlooking the Queen's Highway. The royal coach was moving along surrounded by numerous mounted knights and foot soldiers. They were meant to protect against bandits or raiding parties. Not against a lone assassin attacking from hiding as Snow White was preparing to do.

The royal caravan was almost in position. Regina was visible through the window of her carriage. It would be an easy shot for Snow who had refined her skills first as a child in her own castle and later as a bandit on the run from Regina. The bow which never missed only made this an easier kill.

From her hiding position Snow White loaded an arrow and drew back the bowstring. She took careful aim. Despite the enchantment on the bow she refused to leave anything to chance. A gleeful smile stretched across her face as her revenge was nearly complete.

Snow unleashed the arrow at her prey. It struck, but not the queen. Charming threw himself in front of Snow White and took the projectile in his shoulder. "What are you doing?" Snow barked, nearly giving away her position to the queen's men. Her moment of victory had been snatched away by this interloper.

"I can't let you do this," he told her. Charming knew that if Snow had succeeded she would be cursed to be as evil as the person she killed. He couldn't let that happen and was willing to sacrifice his own life to protect her.

Snow White was taken aback. "You did that for me?" Despite the potion which had taken her ability to love, she was still moved by his actions. Sensing that her resistance was ebbing, Charming kissed her once again. This time it worked. The spell broke and Snow White's memories and ability to love came flooding back. She instantly recognized him. "Charming," she smiled.

Their reunion was short lived. "There he is!"

Two men grabbed hold of Prince Charming and dragged him away. King George's men had found him. Snow White tried to stop them, but she was shoved to the ground and kept down at the point of a polearm. She watched helplessly as Prince Charming was thrown into a moving jail. As George's men carted off Charming she called out to him.

"I will find you," she said. "I will always find you."

* * *

 **~O~**

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

From his perch overlooking the English Channel Terence could see anyone coming or going from Never Land to the mainland. How long had it been since Tinker Bell ran away? Terence couldn't remember anymore. The days had blurred together. His search had been fruitless. Now he sat on this branch every evening keeping watch.

He looked back towards Tinker's Nook. Light glowed from the windows of Tink's teakettle home, though someone else lived there now. For so long those windows were dark. The teakettle was different than any other house in Tinker's Nook. It was Tinker Bell's home. Terence found it for her. The kettle was a gift of love from a time when he didn't even know he loved her. It reflected Tink's personality and she imbued it with her essence. To see those windows alight again by a new occupant was akin to sacrilege.

He turned his gaze back towards the open waters. Somewhere out there was the girl he loved more than his own talent. It has been said that a fairy's talent was his joy. Yet when Tinker Bell went off with Peter Pan it left him feeling empty inside. Tinker Bell was his true joy. Now if he could only tell her that.

But what could he offer Tink that could compare to a daily life of grand adventures like fighting pirates, going to "war" with the Indians or regularly visiting the mainland to play with human children?

Terence sighed again. He was certain he knew the answer.

 **~O~**

Tinker Bell sat on a blade of grass. She had been feeling quite melancholy these last few months. Peter Pan wasn't the answer she was seeking. Peter cared only for himself and having fun. Tinker Bell wasn't his equal or even his sidekick. He used her when he needed something and ignored her when he didn't.

She came to understand what she had left behind. However Tinker Bell didn't go home after coming to this conclusion. She felt ashamed for leaving the way she did. And she was certain Terence was living a happy life with Zarina.

The little tinker fairy had a home in Peter Pan's lair and one in Pixie Hollow yet she no longer felt she belonged in either place. Finally Tink determined that she could not go on living an empty, soulless existence. She bid her goodbyes to Peter and the Lost Boys and went on her way to find her way.

Tinker Bell went to London to pay a visit to Lizzy, but she was embarrassed for not coming to visit all these years. Lizzy had grown up in the interim. She looked so very different from the last time Tink saw the girl. Lizzy was no longer the little schoolgirl with pigtails. She was now a fine young lady with suitors vying for her hand. The Griffiths' home wasn't her solution.

Now where was she to go?

Tinker Bell was homeless. A rogue fairy with a bleak future. That was why she was here today sitting on this blade of grass overlooking the western sky. She was contemplating her next move.

She wanted to come back to Pixie Hollow and make things right with Terence, but what if he rejected her? What if her leaving was the one act he could not forgive?

Strangely Tinker Bell was paralyzed by her own fears, anxieties and doubt. She had broken the rules to visit the mainland; risked her own neck to repair the broken moonstone; charmed a human schoolgirl and her scientist father into setting her free; she ventured into the forbidden Winter Woods and found the sister she never knew existed; and she fought pirates to recover the stolen Blue Pixie Dust. Despite all of that she couldn't find the courage to face her past.

Ironically, Terence sat on a branch only a few dozen yards from her location. As close as they were, the gulf between them never seemed so vast.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Mary Margaret still felt the sting of betrayal. David, whom she had supported when suspicion had been cast upon him, had all but convicted her of Kathryn's murder. But that sense of betrayal didn't stop there. The evidence was mounting against her and it all seemed far too convenient. Someone was certainly conspiring against her. Ms. Blanchard had one supporter left in town, Emma Swan who was also the sheriff.

Like her, Swan thought the evidence was appearing too conveniently and that Mary Margaret was being framed for Kathryn's murder. Furthermore, Emma's suspicions pointed to the mayor, Regina Mills. "We have to keep this a secret," she told the jailed schoolteacher. "If Regina finds out I'm on to her we lose the advantage."

Emma also sensed something else: she needed help. Mary Margaret agreed. Swan left the station to find that all important assistance.

Meanwhile, armed with this new knowledge Ms. Blanchard felt the weight of an unstoppable force moving against her. Regina owned this town. With her political power Regina could rig the trial and convict Ms. Blanchard no matter how innocent she really was.

She wanted to run, but the bars of the sheriff's station prevented that.

Then she felt something. Hiding under her mattress was a key. An old, iron key which looked like a relic from the 19th century. It was also strangely familiar. Mary Margaret took the key and slipped it into the lock of her cell. It fit perfectly.

 **~O~**

"I need your help," Emma told the pawn broker, Mr. Gold.

"I thought you didn't want my assistance?" he asked, recalling how Emma rejected him after learning how he "helped" her become sheriff. His amoral methods were far too distasteful for Emma.

That was then.

"Every time I've gone up against Regina she's seen me coming and I've lost," she said. "All except once. When you helped me win the election."

"Are you asking me for yourself?"

"I'm asking for a friend."

Gold smiled. "Agreed."

* * *

 **~O~**

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

Snow White made her return to the home of the seven dwarfs. She felt mortified after how she treated them. Certainly she was under the influence of a spell, but she still felt sick to her stomach about it.

"Here," she said presenting one of the dwarf's with a mug.

"We don't want your trinkets, sister," Grumpy answered, unimpressed.

"It was the only thing I broke that I could replace."

Immediately they knew that the old Snow White was back. The dwarfs greeted their reconstituted friend warmly. Unfortunately she couldn't stay. King George had taken Prince Charming and she had to rescue him.

"You're not going anywhere," Grumpy said.

"But he needs my help," she said.

"I meant, you're not going anywhere without us," Grumpy clarified. No one recognized it yet, but this moment was the beginning of Snow White's army.

 **~O~**

The Dark Castle. Rumpelstiltskin's home. He could sense that Prince Charming had rescued his damsel in distress, Snow White. True love conquered all. That was how things worked in this land. If only he could bottle the single most powerful magic that ever existed.

He grinned a grotesque and toothy grin. From Charming's coat he pulled a strand of the prince's hair. This he took and placed into a vial with another strand of hair, the one he took from Snow White when he prepared the spell which erased her love.

Separately they were little more than what they were. Together, they were so much more. Charming's strand of hair wrapped itself around the strand which came from Snow White's head, as if protecting it, or hugging it lovingly. They glowed with a magical energy never before seen.

Rumpelstiltskin capped the vial and placed it upon his shelf in the once empty space labelled simply "LOVE."

Contented, The Dark One grinned and let out a gleeful little laugh. A laugh which could send shudders of terror through anyone else. He had achieved another milestone in his master plan. A plan which was now that much closer to fruition.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Night. Somewhere in the darkness was the schoolteacher Mary Margaret. She took advantage of the key which mysteriously appeared in her jail cell and was now on the run. By now most everyone was asleep and Ms. Blanchard was able to move among the shadows through one of the neighborhoods of Storybrooke. Her goal was to get to the main road unseen and flee Storybrooke, leaving behind the town that had turned its back on her.

 **~O~**

Vidia had settled in for the night, dressed in warm sweatpants and a purple tanktop. Tina and Penny were in the other bedroom carrying on. They were using Google to find projects which could be made with Tina's brand new 3-D printer. She could hear them laugh, squeal and talk excitedly right through the walls.

Flustered, Vidia slipped on her house shoes and descended the stairs for a drink in the kitchen. She took a glass from the cupboard and poured water from the faucet. She yawned as the glass filled. Looking through the small kitchen window she spotted something moving in the backyard.

At first she thought it might be a neighborhood cat prowling the night. But upon closer inspection what she saw was far too big for a cat.

"Mary Margaret Blanchard?" Vidia put the filled glass on the counter. What was she doing out here in the middle of the night? The newspaper and local TV news reported that she was in jail as the primary suspect in the disappearance of Kathryn Nolan.

Ms. Blanchard snuck through the backyard trying to avoid being spotted. Vidia, who still had faith in the schoolteacher on the strength of Henry's book, was most concerned. She threw on a jacket, went outside and followed Mary Margaret determined to find out what was going on.

* * *

 **Okay, this brings an end to episode 16. I hope you enjoyed it. Thank you for reading.**


	27. Chapter 27

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **Season 1, Episode 17, Chapter 1**

 _The following events occur during the season 1 episode titled "Hat Trick."_

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Henry was waiting for Emma when she returned to the sheriff's station with Mr. Gold. He congratulated her on the success of the next phase of her plan to help Ms. Blanchard. Emma was visibly confused, at least until she found the jail cell empty. Emma's first thought was that Henry had set Ms. Blanchard free. The boy did make it known that he was determined to protect his schoolteacher from his adoptive mother. Henry, though, was not the responsible party.

Somehow Mary Margaret had escaped while the station was otherwise empty. Immediately Swan set out to find and recover the schoolteacher. Gold reminded her that if she was caught aiding Ms. Blanchard her employment as town sheriff would be in jeopardy. Regina would use it as an excuse to demonstrate a lack of impartiality which in turn would provide her with a viable reason to fire Swan.

"I would rather lose my job than my friend," Emma replied, a cold and focused conviction in her voice.

But that wasn't all that was at stake. Emma and Gold both recognized that Mary Margaret was placing herself into a very difficult situation. Tomorrow morning was Ms. Blanchard's arraignment proceeding where formal charges would be made against her and bail would be set. If she did not appear and was found missing the schoolteacher would be branded a fugitive from justice. Any hope of proving her innocence would be lost forever.

Regina, if she was indeed the person responsible for framing Mary Margaret, would win by default.

Emma was not about to let that happen.

* * *

 **~O~**

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

A man ran through the forest from a dogged pursuer. The man was dressed in a long coat. He was tall and despite his slender build was still quite imposing. He hid behind some trees, but was discovered nonetheless.

"Found you!" his pursuer cried out. The person giving chase was a smiling little girl named Grace. She was about ten years of age. The tall man went by the name of Jefferson. Grace was his daughter. They were playing a game of hide and seek.

Jefferson took great joy in spending time with his daughter. He made sure every moment together was quality time.

"Again," she requested with delight. "Again!"

"I'm sorry, sweetheart. Later," he said, probably sounding more disappointed than she that the game had to come to an end. Jefferson and Grace hunted and collected edible mushrooms in the forest to earn a living. The game made hunting the fungus more entertaining for both of them. Now, though, they had to proceed to the market and sell their harvest. Their crop sold quickly and netted a small sum. Selling mushrooms didn't pay very well, but it was enough for Jefferson and Grace to eat, make clothes and live in a small home among the towering trees of the forest.

Upon returning from the market they were greeted by an unusual and most disquieting sight. The queen's carriage awaited them at their cottage. Jefferson was concerned. Regina was very powerful and not to be trusted. He sent Grace into the woods to hide and instructed her not to return until the queen had gone.

When she was safely away, Jefferson greeted his royal guest. Regina had come to him this day seeking a favor. Jefferson had at one time been a highly sought after realm jumper. Realm jumping was a rare and coveted talent. People with this gift had the ability to manipulate a magical talisman which opened portals between realms that would otherwise be wholly inaccessible.

People with such gifts were paid most handsomely for their services. Sometimes kingdoms employed realm jumpers exclusively offering a lavish lifestyle for jumper and their families in return for their unique talent. This not only bred loyalty to the crown, but also removed the realm jumper from the employment of competing kingdoms.

Jefferson had once commanded an exorbitant price which allowed his family to live very, very well. That was no longer the case. Regina seemed almost offended at the level of poverty in which Jefferson allowed himself and his daughter to exist. She offered him a handsome reward for one more jump. Enough so that Grace would never have to endure such squalor ever again.

Jefferson refused. Grace lost her mother (and his wife) during one such unfortunate sojourn. Jefferson gave up his work so that Grace wouldn't lose her father, too. Regina tried her best to convince him otherwise, but he still refused. "Family is everything," he told her. "You don't abandon family."

Queen Regina was most disappointed in his decision, but she agreed with him. Family was indeed everything.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Vidia stepped out into the cold night. The house shoes she wore, while warm, were not up to the task of moving about out of doors. Secretly she hoped to not be outside for very long. Even her slippers from Pixie Hollow offered more support and protection from the hard ground. Quietly, the young fairy turned human approached the crouched figure of Mary Margaret Blanchard, the schoolteacher accused of kidnapping and murder.

"Ms. Blanchard?"

"Yeep!" The woman nearly bolted out of her skin. "Oh, Valerie. You nearly scared the life out of me."

"Sorry. What are you doing out here?"

"You didn't see me. Please just go back inside and forget this ever happened."

"But you're supposed to be in jail," Vidia said, pointing out the obvious. "Did they let you out?"

Vidia silently berated herself. She knew the answer. If Mary Margaret had been freed she wouldn't be sneaking around and certainly she wouldn't be asking her to forget this encounter.

"Listen to me. I don't want you to get into trouble," Ms. Blanchard told the young woman, whispering loud enough for her serious tone to be understood while not being so loud as to wake the sleeping residents in their homes. "I'm leaving town. I didn't hurt Kathryn, but someone is trying to frame me for her murder."

"Who is trying to frame you?"

"Regina, but no one believes me."

Vidia's eyes narrowed. She still remembered quite bitterly the sting of the lengthy and unnecessary trial which she was subjected to by the mayor. "Oh, I can believe it," Vidia hissed. "She tried to run us out of town, too. I won't let that evil witch get away with it. Can we help? Maybe you can stay with us?" Vidia offered, remembering the kindness this woman paid her when she was homeless, alone and sick.

Ms. Blanchard smiled. "Thank you. But I can't put you and your family in any danger. I have to do this on my own." With that Mary Margaret darted to the next yard and into the shadows. Vidia wanted to follow her, but she wasn't properly dressed.

 **~O~**

Vidia quietly padded her way upstairs towards her bedroom. From Tina's room she heard laughter. Both Tina and Penny were still awake and apparently watching television.

"When is Phineas going to wise up and realize Isabella has a crush on him?" Tina said.

"I'm wondering what will happen when Vanessa finds out that Ferb has eyes for her," Penny replied.

"I think she already knows, but 'Ferbessa' will never happen," Tina answered. "Isn't she dating some goth dude?"

"Yeah, but it won't last. He's a jerk. Ooh, ooh, here comes the song. Ready?"

"Ready!"

Then together they both began to sing. "A-G-L-E-T! Aglet!"

 _Aglet? What the heck's an "aglet?"_ Vidia asked herself. Refusing to get distracted Vidia silently entered her room and promptly changed from her night clothes into her day wear. Winter leggings, a shirt and sweater, socks and sneakers. The young woman then silently extricated herself from the bedroom and softly closed her door behind her. She snuck back towards the stairs. When passing Tina's room for the second time she heard a new conversation. One that was even more bizarre than the first.

"Kgrgrgrgrgrgr! See, from the back of the throat," Tina said.

"No, no. It's from the front," Penny protested. "I saw Dee Bradley Baker do it at Comic Con. Okay, so he covered his mouth, but I'm sure it was from the front. Drdrdrdrdr!

"What? Perry the Platypus doesn't sound anything like that."

"Yes, he does. Drdrdrdrdr!"

"Kgrgrgrgrgrgrgr!"

"Drdrdrdrdrdrdr!"

"Kgrgrgrgrgrgrgr!"

"Drdrdrdrdrdrdr!"

Vidia just shook her head in disbelief. "That's not the sound a platypus makes," Vidia whispered. "And Tink should know better, Fawn taught her how to speak platypus."

On her way out the back door the dark haired girl again slipped on her jacket and donned a warm hat. She also remembered to bring a flashlight along with two bottles of water. The hinges were mercifully silent when Vidia closed and locked the door from the kitchen. She stepped quietly to the alley which ran between this house and the neighbor's. Mary Margaret was long gone. Had she missed her?

The sound of a barking dog several houses away signaled the schoolteacher's whereabouts.

"Thataway!" Vidia said, now following close behind.

* * *

 **~O~**

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND (The Late Victorian Era)

Vidia felt the sting of the queen's punishment.

"OW!"

In more ways than one. She was to drive every Sprinting Thistle back to Needlepoint Meadow for her part in events that led to the destruction of the preparations for spring. That annoying little Tinker Bell somehow managed to extract that information out of her right in front of the queen.

"Watch it!" she yelled at the thistle. She had lassoed one and was desperately trying to force it to its home. The weed wasn't cooperating and Vidia was being dragged across the hard, scraggily ground one pointy bump after another. Finally she gave up and released the horrid weed to its own devices. "I hope you run off a cliff!" she yelled after it.

Vidia lay down on the dirt. The dust settled around her. She cupped her hand over her lips to keep it out of her mouth. She was breathing hard after that experience and had no desire to suck in any of it. Her clothing was ripped and torn in several places. Her ponytail had come loose and her long, dark hair was flowing freely. As she lay on the ground it splayed out all around her.

The fast flyer then tried to sit up. Her body hurt so much she quickly lay back down again. A series of groans and curses exited from her lips. She could feel all the spots on her that suffered friction burns. But what truly burned Vidia most was that Tinker Bell didn't suffer any consequences of her own. Sure she somehow managed to save the season, but really? That arrogant tinker should have to bring these blasted weeds back to Needlepoint Meadow, too.

Then suddenly every inch of pain and burning fled her body. A wicked smile crept across her face. Her lips spread so wide one might be excused for thinking her face was about to split in half. That was going to be her plan. Frame Tinker Bell so that she would have to take the weeds back to Needlepoint meadow.

Vidia leapt to her feet with new found enthusiasm. Then, "OW! Oooh! That stings!" First she had to visit the infirmary.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Mary Margaret stopped at a tree in the forest to catch her breath. She was gasping for breath after a hard run. She looked back. The lights of Storybrooke were now in the distance. The schoolteacher never noticed how peaceful and lovely the lights of the town looked from this vantage point. But right now she couldn't give in to sightseeing. She had to keep moving. The city limits were still a good distance away. Once she crossed that line it was still several miles to the next town.

Part of her wanted to slow down to conserve energy for the long walk ahead of her. She couldn't. Back in town Blanchard was certain she had heard someone following her. Mary Margaret knew that once Sheriff Swan found she was missing from the jail cell Emma would have no choice but to come after her.

Ms. Blanchard was quite certain that the person giving chase was the sheriff. Though she had not heard anyone since leaving the city proper, the schoolteacher could not afford to give her pursuer a chance to catch up. Mary Margaret took a few more deep breaths and then took off running through the woods again.

 **~O~**

Vidia had lost sight of Mary Margaret once the woman left the city. With open space in front of her Blanchard took off in a sprint. "How can a schoolteacher run like that?" she asked herself. "What does she do, hike ten miles every morning?" Vidia tried to keep up, but she was more accustomed to flying fast rather than running fast.

The girl leaned against a tree to catch her breath. She looked down and saw footprints left in the soft dirt. This was the only way she could track the woman on the run. Vidia pulled a bottle of water from her coat pocket and finished off the clear liquid inside. Only one bottle left.

 _Should have brought more._

Vidia checked her wrist watch. She estimated that some two or three hours had passed since taking up pursuit of Ms. Blanchard. Now she wished she had brought a candy bar along with the water. Dinner was a distant memory and her stomach was starting to rumble. "Focus." Vidia started onward again, carefully following the shoe impressions in the ground.

 **~O~**

A dense fog had rolled across the town thanks to the cold night air meeting the warmer waters of the Atlantic. It got so bad that soon Vidia could barely see ten feet in any direction. The flashlight she had brought along quickly became useless except to illuminate the ground immediately in front of her.

Vidia had never planned on coming this far and thought about turning around and heading back home. Wherever Mary Margaret was, she was being obscured by the dense fog. If she made it to the road she might have already left town and found a ride. Vidia gave up. She took a few steps back towards home and then she stopped.

"She can't leave town," Vidia suddenly remembered. "That's what Henry said. No one from Storybrooke can leave. If they do something bad will happen. If Ms. Blanchard got as far as the city limits then… I have to keep going."

She took a swig from her second bottle and plodded onward. Her leg muscles soon began to protest louder than ever. The ground she tread was now going up a hill. With each step her mind told her to go back. She had to forcibly remind herself to continue her pursuit. "I'm coming, Ms. Blanchard," she breathed. "I'm coming."

"Coming for whom?" a male voice called out.

Vidia was startled. She wasn't expecting anyone else out here except the schoolteacher. A shadow in the fog approached. She shined a light on him. When he got close enough she noticed he was a tall man dressed in a long coat. He was a bit slender, but still rather imposing. She didn't recognize him.

"Hello, Vidia," he said.

"Who are you? How do you know my name?" she demanded of him.

He smiled and answered, "My name is Jefferson. And I've been keeping my eye on you."

* * *

 **Note: If the Pixie Hollow flashback sounds familiar, well, it is. The story I wrote titled _Vidia's Revenge_ began life as a flashback for _Tinker Bell in Storybrooke_. I eventually turned it into a work of its own as it quickly became too long and complicated to leave as a simple flashback. The events which take place in Pixie Hollow in this episode are a variation of that original idea. **


	28. Chapter 28

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **Season 1, Episode 17, Chapter 2**

* * *

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

It was a stuffed white rabbit. That was all Grace wanted. The old lady at the cart offered it to Jefferson, but she demanded the price of one silver coin. Jefferson could only afford eight coppers, what he had earned from his mushroom hunt the day before. He tried to haggle with the woman, but she refused to accept anything less than one silver.

"I don't need it," Grace told her father sweetly. Her eyes, though, told another story. It was a darling toy and one that would have brought great joy to her heart. Any good father could see that. Jefferson tried once more to get the shopkeeper to lower her price, but she still refused.

Grace pulled her father from the cart. "Let's go, Papa. It's okay."

To make amends he fashioned a similar stuffed rabbit from left over material he had back home. "I love it," Grace said, adding her new toy to the table where she conducted a tea party with her father and other toys as guests. The patchwork rabbit he made looked terrible compared to the one the old lady was selling. Jefferson's heart broke. He couldn't even afford to buy a decent stuffed toy for his little girl.

Jefferson sat down to "tea" and told Grace to stay with the neighbors for the day. He was going to do some work. Grace wanted to come along. She loved walking through the woods with her father.

"I'm not going into the woods," he told her.

"Are you going to see the queen?" she asked.

He couldn't lie to her. "Yes I am."

Jefferson explained he wanted her to have everything she needed, which he could no longer provide selling mushrooms. Grace wept saying the only thing she needed was him. "Please don't go," she asked of him, afraid of the queen and afraid that something terrible might happen to him.

"I'll be back in time for your next tea party," he told her. "I promise."

Jefferson collected a large box from a trunk which contained his magical talisman. He donned his formal clothes and special made long coat and headed for the queen's castle, prepared for one last journey through the portals into other worlds that lived side by side with this one.

 **~O~**

"You promise that my daughter will want for nothing if I do this?" Jefferson clarified, determined to extract all the comforts Queen Regina could afford for the one person that was more precious to him than anything in this world… or any other he had visited.

Grace was the reason he gave up being a realm jumper. And the girl was why he was here at the royal palace. But Regina already knew that. Family was Jefferson's Achilles' heel and she had exploited it perfectly. Back at the market, Regina had used her black magic to appear as the old lady with the white rabbit doll. The one she refused to sell for the eight coppers he had offered. Regina had found his weakness and manipulated him into doing this one last realm jump to recover something that had been taken from her. Now she just needed to seal the deal.

"Of course," she said in agreement, extracting all _she_ could out of him. "Now then, let's see the hat."

Jefferson opened the huge, round box and removed an oversized plush hat. He set it on the ground and gave it a spin. The hat used the ambient magic of this world to open a giant spinning portal into another realm. As it did so, the hat stretched and grew, becoming exaggeratedly large with a vast and dark tunnel where the inner lining used to be. The spinning chapeau kicked up a mighty whirlwind which buffeted the two travelers.

"You first," the realm jumper told Regina over the din of the open portal.

Sensing he might balk at leaving his daughter behind she offered a compromise. "Together," she replied, taking his hand in hers. Both took a deep breath and then jumped into the magic, swirling vortex that was created by the hat. Both plunged through the darkness until they arrived at their destination. A hall of mirrors. Each mirror a doorway into another world as real as their own.

* * *

 **~O~**

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

"Tinker Bell," Vidia greeted. She could barely contain the bile in her own stomach. The contempt she had for this golden haired girl was immeasurable. "I could… use," Vidia stopped and held her head down in shame. Not genuine shame, it was all an act. Vidia wouldn't lower herself to do this without reason… and boy did she have a reason today.

"What do you want Vidia?" Tinker Bell asked apprehensively.

Vidia took in a deep breath and slowly let it out. "I need some help," she finally spit out. "I can't control the thistles very well with a lasso. Could I… could I borrow those Shepherd's Crooks you made?"

"They don't work," Tinker Bell informed her. "I lost control of the thistles when I tried to corral them, remember?"

"No, they worked fine," Vidia blurted out. "Oops."

Tink narrowed her eyes. "What do you mean they work fine?"

Vidia gave a nervous chuckle. "Heh. Uh, would you believe I opened the corral and let the thistles loose?"

"You what?!"

"I was jealous," Vidia shot back. "I've always been the one with the strongest talent. No one has ever come close. Then you came along and stole my spotlight. I… I didn't want to lose that."

Tinker Bell sighed. "That took a lot of courage, Vidia," Tink told her. "Of course you can borrow the Shepherd's Crooks. I'll make new ones and have them for you tomorrow morning."

Vidia looked up and gave her a big, joyous smile. "You will? Oh thank you! Thank you!"

"Hey, what are friends for?" Tink explained.

"Yeah, 'friend,'" Vidia said, highlighting the word friend as she spoke. "But listen, I could use some help learning how to use them. Do you think you could teach me? 'Friend?'"

"Sure," Tink replied happily. "But I'm certain you'll get the hang of it in no time."

"With you as my teacher, I know I will."

"Great! See you in the morning," Tink said as she retreated to her worktable to fashion new staffs.

Ugh. That was sickening for Vidia to be that nice to that tinker fairy. But she had put her plan into action. Now all she had to do was let Tinker Bell use those rotten staffs to grab a couple of thistles. Then Vidia would scare the thistles into running wild again with Tinker Bell in tow. Once the queen saw what her favorite tinker had wrought she would have no choice but to force Tinker Bell into sharing Vidia's punishment.

 _Then I'll just sit back and let that lousy Tinker Bell do all the work for me._

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

The room began to spin and Emma kicked herself mentally for not realizing she was being led into a trap this whole time. Sheriff Swan had been driving hard through the streets of town looking for Mary Margaret, but only found one person who could help. Valerie Kensington who told Emma she had been following the schoolteacher into the woods and up the hill.

"Thanks," Emma told the girl. Valerie wanted to come along, but Emma didn't need someone getting in the way. "Sorry, this is official police business. Now go home. I can take it from here."

Sheriff Swan's hunt for Ms. Blanchard was impeded by the mist that seemed to live in the forest like a formless creature that existed everywhere all at once. She could barely see more than a few feet in front of her. Emma craned her neck and squinted to see into the obscured trees right up until she nearly ran over a pedestrian in the road.

"Are you okay?" she asked him. The tall, slender man who identified himself as Jefferson said he was, but the pronounced limp in his leg told another story.

"What are you doing out here in the middle of the night," he asked her as the two got into her car. Emma had offered and he accepted a ride back his house.

"I was looking for…," she paused, not willing to reveal her true intent, "… for my dog. Spot."

Emma couldn't believe it but she managed to pull that off with a straight face. Though "Spot" was a rather generic name. She could have thought of something better. Like "Rex" or "Patches."

Jefferson directed Emma up the hill and towards his home. Mercifully, the mist lifted and Emma found herself shamelessly gawking at the glorious splendor of his magnificent home. His house was enormous and fit for a governor or a captain of industry. Clearly he was neither, but Jefferson was able to afford it nonetheless.

Inside Jefferson offered her some hot tea. Emma took a few sips to warm herself, but said she had to keep looking.

"Maybe I can help," he said. As it turned out, the man was an amateur cartographer and had generated detailed maps of the area. He rolled out several to aid in Emma's search.

As he spoke, pointing out locations and distances, Emma began to feel the room spin. The tea. It had been drugged. She stumbled, but Jefferson grabbed her in his arms and carried the woman to the sofa. Emma wanted to resist, but she didn't have the mental focus to do it. She was only able to recognize one key thing.

"You're not limping," she observed groggily.

"Ah well, I guess you caught me," he said.

Emma then passed out.

* * *

 **So what happened to Vidia after she ran into Jefferson. Keep reading to find out.**


	29. Chapter 29

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **Season 1, Episode 17, Chapter 3**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

"Would you like some tea?"

That was how she was lured into his home. Vidia had followed Mary Margaret up a hill in the mist. The schoolteacher had run far ahead but the one time fast flyer managed to track the woman's footprints in the soggy dirt. When there were footprints. Suddenly he was there. A tall man named Jefferson. He wore a double breasted long coat to bar against the cold.

Vidia was feeling the chill herself. The heavy mist and humidity that hung in the air had penetrated her coat. A cup of hot tea sounded good right about now.

Jefferson had overheard Vidia talking to herself. "You're looking for someone?" he asked her.

"Uh, yeah."

"Mary Margaret?"

"Yes."

"She's safe at my house. I'll take you to her."

"Wait a minute. How did you know my name?" she asked him.

"You're kind of famous in this town," the man who went by the name Jefferson replied. "Not much happens in Storybrooke so your accident and trial made the front page news almost every day. Now let's go, I'm sure your friend is getting worried. Would you like some tea?"

A more than reasonable explanation, and seemingly nice gesture. Vidia followed him up the hillside and beyond the mist to his house, a mansion in the Tudor style. _This is where Queen Clarion should be living_ , Vidia thought to herself. _It's worthy of a monarch._

Her host guided Vidia down a hallway and into a room. On the table were some maps. A steaming hot teakettle and cup sat next to it. That hot tea was going to taste so good and feel so relaxing.

A second later she spotted the bound and gagged form of Sheriff Emma Swan lying on the couch. Immediately she knew she was in trouble. Before Vidia could make a move she heard a click behind her. The young woman spun around and peered down the barrel of a weapon. The last sidearm Vidia had seen was the single shot flintlock Captain James Hook the pirate carried; but she didn't need a primer on modern day firearms to know a gun when she saw one.

Jefferson's weapon wasn't as ornate as Hook's pistol nor did it have the same level of craftsmanship. This device was small, metal, utilitarian and clearly mass produced. But it functioned on the same principles and was capable of generating the same results: one dead fairy.

"What have you done to her?" she asked him. Despite the weapon pointed directly at her temple Vidia was defiant to the last, not even bothering to put her hands up in the air or even appear frightened. She had dealt with men like him in the past and had bested each and every one of them. Of course, she was a six inch fast flyer back then. Now she was a five and a half foot tall human female with much slower reflexes and a substantially reduced range of movement.

Vidia knew she wouldn't be able fly out of this mess.

"Sheriff Swan is taking a nap," Jefferson told her, a sardonic tone present in his voice. "Now come with me, I have job for you."

Vidia chose to follow his orders, biding her time until an opportunity for escape presented itself. Obviously she would have to rely entirely on her wits as the Sheriff was unconscious in the other room. Probably why he took her there in first place, to convince her of just how helpless she really was. Vidia, however, refused to accept that. She might be in human form now, but she was never helpless.

* * *

 **~O~**

HALL OF MIRRORS

Jefferson and Regina stood within the Grand Hall of Mirrors. This place was a sort of central nexus, a hub where behind every looking glass existed a new and fantastic place, each a world all unto its own. In magical parlance, a realm. In modern language, a parallel universe. The pair stood before a particular mirror. They could not see the other side, only a reflection of themselves. Before going forward Jefferson reminded Regina of something most important.

"The same number of people who go through must come back out," he told her. "Those are the hat's rules, not mine." It was a warning that if one was captured or lost the other would be trapped behind the looking glass forever. This meant that to make it back safe and sound it would be in each person's best interest to ensure the safety and survival of the other.

"I understand," she told him. Jefferson then reached out and touched the reflective mirror. As he did so his fingers passed through as if the looking glass were a suspended liquid. Regina watched with utter astonishment. She had seen this before, but it never ceased to amaze her. Jefferson the realm jumper stepped through with Regina right beside him.

The two travelers found themselves in a place where the rules of nature and logic did not always work in the same way as in the Enchanted Forest. The world was a riot of bright greens, blues, yellows, oranges, reds, pinks and purples which assaulted the senses without mercy. The mirror to exit this place existed in a field of grass where the blades stood bigger and broader than any man and flowering plants were as tall as the tallest sequoia.

Before the pair had not taken more than a few steps when they were greeted by a most unusual denizen of this realm. A mammoth caterpillar the size of a hippopotamus sat atop a mushroom cap which was itself almost as big as a house. The giant blue Lepidoptera wore a Fez on its head and dark glasses over its eyes. Sitting next to it was a hookah from which it took a deep puff.

"Who are you?" it asked of them. When neither spoke a peep the caterpillar took another draught of his hookah and asked again, this time exhaling smoke rings to accentuate each word. "Who… are… you?"

Jefferson waved away the foul smelling vapor. He refused to answer the caterpillars greeting. Instead he carried on following the queen and muttered, "I hate Wonderland."

* * *

 **~O~**

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

Tinker Bell arrived the next morning right on time. She brought with her two newly crafted Shepherd's Crooks for Vidia. Walking alongside her was the mouse named Cheese. He had been instrumental in assisting Tinker Bell keep up with and corral two of the thistles. The very same ones Vidia had set free afterwards.

"What's he doing here?" Vidia asked, pointing to the pink eared mouse.

"He's going to help you, Vidia," Tinker Bell replied.

 _I don't need some fur ball of a mouse to help me catch the thistles_ , Vidia thought. She nearly blurted it out, but managed to stifle her reaction. "Great," she said through a phony smile accentuated by clenched teeth. "I can use all the help I can get."

Vidia couldn't believe just how sickeningly sweet she was having to act just to pull this off. But in her mind it was the only way to convince Queen Clarion that Tinker Bell was just as deserving of a penalty as she was.

Tinker Bell handed one of the Shepherd's Crooks to her. "Here, feel the weight."

Vidia took the staff in hand and was surprised. It wasn't nearly as heavy as she thought, but it was still substantial.

"It's been perfectly weighted and balanced just for you," Tinker Bell explained. "And I cut the length so that if you need to fly it won't interfere with the strokes of your longer wings."

"Wait, you did all that… just for me?" Vidia asked, utterly incredulous.

"Yup. I stayed up all night making sure everything was just right," Tink replied. "I even made the grips comfortable to reduce fatigue and prevent callousing."

Vidia examined the staff and took it by the perfectly carved handles. They were more than comfortable in her hands and the tiny yet smooth diamond shaped ridges almost seemed to be massaging her palms. The fingers slots were perfectly shaped for her and no doubt would improve her ability to control the two staffs while wrangling the weeds.

The fast flyer could not believe the impressive attention to every detail Tinker Bell had put into these two Shepherd's Crooks. Certainly this tinker fairy was immensely talented.

 _NO! Keep your focus, Vidia_ , she thought, berating herself for even allowing the slightest wisp of sympathy towards her nemesis to enter her thoughts. _Remember why you are here. Remember those accursed thistles she made you chase. And think how much fun it will be to watch little miss perfect fail spectacularly._

Tinker Bell explained Cheese's presence. As Tinker Bell had before, Vidia was to ride mouseback while pursuing the Sprinting Thistles. Riding Cheese meant Vidia could put more attention on hooking the weeds and moving them to Needlepoint Meadow.

"Now remember, Vidia," Tink told her, "don't fight the thistles. Let them do all the work, you just guide them with the hooks."

Vidia tried to appear overwhelmed by the prospect. She hoped she was doing it right. Otherwise Vidia might come off looking constipated, instead.

"Uh, could you demonstrate?" she asked. "I want to see how it's done so I can be sure to do it right."

"Of course," Tinker Bell responded cheerfully. "Just fly alongside and watch what I do."

"I'll be right in your hip pocket," Vidia replied, patting her own hip pocket in the process. The night before Vidia visited the light fairy guild. Vidia, a fast flyer, couldn't hold or manipulated rays or orbs of the stuff, but she could contain it. When no one was looking she took a small vial made by the tinkers and scooped up some that Iridessa was going to use for the fireflies. Once Tinker Bell had hooked a thistle or two Vidia would release the glowing ball and frighten the thistles into another stampede. This time Tinker Bell would get the full blame and a well-deserved comeuppance.

All Vidia had to do was wait for the perfect opportunity.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Penny woke to the sound of a door closing. She opened one groggy eye and peered into the mostly darkened room, a tiny nightlight providing the only illumination. She spied a recognizable figure moving across the space.

"What are you doing?" Penny asked Tina. "It's the middle of the night?"

Tina put down a plate and bowl. "I got hungry," Tina whispered back. "So I went and got some of my birthday cake."

"What's in the bowl?"

"Cereal."

"Cereal? And cake?"

"Yeah. And there's half a tuna sandwich and some pickles slices, too."

"You do know what this means, don't you?" Penny asked, hoping to convince her friend of the truth she refused to accept.

"That I'm hungry?"

"No. You're pregnant."

"Ugh. Not this again. I just got a little peckish that's all. Don't tell me you've never had the munchies in the middle of the night."

"Not like this."

"Go back to sleep and let me eat in my peace," Tina scolded. She was in no mood to have this conversation again.

Penny grunted her displeasure before pulling the blankets over herself hoping to once again find the delightful comfort of a deep and satisfying slumber.

 **~O~**

Vidia was taken at gun point to another room. With the shock of betrayal now clear of her mind she began taking note of her surroundings and her captor. Jefferson was smartly dressed in a long sleeve shirt which Vidia guessed was probably silk. Over it he wore a suit vest. Both were complemented by the dark slacks and tasteful boots he wore. Curiously, Jefferson had an ascot around his neck.

She had seen such things as at one time men of wealth, authority or breeding often wore them as part of their normal attire. However, the ascot and other similar neckwear had fallen out of favor in this century in favor of the simple necktie. This was precisely why Jefferson's ascot stood out to her.

"In here," he said. This new room was clearly setup for work. There was a large table in the center of the space and hanging above it was a light fixture that even Tinker Bell would be jealous of. The fixture was composed of numerous, moveable arms each with its own lamp. The arms surrounded the table illuminating any a project from every angle possible. It was a tinker's dream come true.

On one wall Vidia noted several large shelves each displaying copies of the same exaggerated top hat. The hats were made of what looked like felt. A large piece of paper was stuck in the band of every hat. They looked vaguely familiar to her but Vidia couldn't quite place where she had seen them before. On the other wall were large windows typical of this type of older construction, a tip she learned from Claire. Standing in front of one of the windows was a brass telescope. Vidia noted that it was aimed at Storybrooke and not up at the sky like one would think.

"Get started," he told her.

"Doing what?" she asked him, confused.

He pointed to the hats on the wall. "I need you to make one of those," he told her. "You're a fairy from that place so you have the magic I need."

"Fairy? Wait, you know?" she said, astonished.

"I know you broke free from the curse when you had your accident," Jefferson informed her.

"Yes. That's right. When did you break free?" she asked him.

"I was never under Regina's spell," he told her. "Which is a curse itself. Now you have magic so get started making hats."

Still not sure what he was talking about Vidia had to convince him of a terrible truth. "I don't have magic," she confessed.

Jefferson raised his gun at her again, aiming between her eyes. "That's a lie, Vidia. You're a fast flying fairy. I've been to your world."

"You've been to Never Land?" Vidia asked with amazement. "How did you get there? Can you take us back?"

"No more questions. I know exactly who and what you are. How you abandoned your dragon boyfriend, the same young man you nearly abandoned the night you tried to run away from home."

"Dragon? What dragon? What boyfriend? I don't have a boyfriend. Here or anywhere else."

"The dragon Kyto who used to make you fly faster," Jefferson said, now sounding more agitated. "You left him because you found something else in Fairy Haven that could make you fly even faster than he could. That's why you are here because he wanted to be with you for the rest of his life."

"What are you talking about? There are no dragons on Never Land," Vidia said. "And what is this… Fairy Haven?"

"Your home," he yelled back at her. "Where you and all of your friends live."

"No it isn't. Our home is called Pixie Hollow," she informed him.

Jefferson pulled back a moment, stunned. "Wait a minute. That means you're the other Vidia. So then why is Kyto here?"

Vidia was more confused than ever. "Other Vidia? What other Vidia? There is only one of me. And who is this dragon Kyto?"

"Never mind. Use your magic and start making hats."

"Like I said before I don't have magic," she answered.

"Yes! You! Do!" he shouted, brandishing his weapon for emphasis. "How else can you fly and manipulate nature?"

"Pixie dust," she told him. "Without it we can't use our talents. And there is none in Storybrooke to be had."

Jefferson stalked back and forth, keeping his gun at his side. The man fixed his gaze on Vidia who surmised that he was probably trying to determine if she was telling him the truth. Whether she lived or died tonight might hinge on him believing her.

"Can you or can you not make these hats?" he asked.

"No, because you kidnapped the wrong talent," she replied. "This is Tinker Bell's department. I'm a fast flyer, not a tinker fairy. She designs and builds and weaves. I make breezes, winds and collect pollen."

"Then you are useless to me."

* * *

 **So what happens to Vidia next? You'll have to wait for the next chapter to find out.**

 **This episode "Hat Trick" introduced Wonderland as part of the _Once Upon A Time_ universe. The creators OUAT made a tie in show titled _Once Upon A Time in Wonderland_. The series only lasted one season and never attracted the audience that the original did. However, as it turned out the creators were fans of the Disney Fairies franchise because _Once Upon a Time in Wonderland_ featured an in universe version of Silvermist (portrayed by Jordana Largy) where she works as a ferrywoman taking people across a lake. . **

**Within the context of the spin off series, Silvermist once had a relationship with Will, the Knave of Hearts. As it turns out, Will is also Will Scarlett from the Robin Hood stories. Will Scarlett comes to Storybrooke and becomes a recurring character in season four of _Once Upon a Time_. If I ever get that far it could be interesting to see how he reacts to our Silvermist.**


	30. Chapter 30

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **Season 1, Episode 17, Chapter 4**

* * *

WONDERLAND

Regina and Jefferson had made their escape. They had navigated a carnivorous hedge maze and evaded the foot soldiers of the infamous Queen of Hearts. Queen Regina had stolen a small box from a vault at the center of the maze. It seemed that the way home was clear, the looking glass which led back to the Great Hall and the hat back to their world was right before them.

She stopped suddenly. "What are you doing?" Jefferson asked, more than confused as he watched Regina pull off a small piece from a giant mushroom.

"A small snack," she replied.

"Do you know what the food here will do to you?" he asked her, both rhetorically and incredulously.

Regina set down the small box she had stolen from the Queen of Hearts and opened its lid. She placed the small piece of mushroom inside and waited. A puff of purple smoke revealed an elderly man smartly dressed as a valet. He had white hair and a receding hairline.

"Daddy," she greeted happily.

"Daddy? This is what the queen stole from you? Your father?"

According to Regina the Queen of Hearts viewed her as a major threat. She kidnapped Regina's father to gain some leverage and now she had taken him back. Jefferson knew he had been conned. Their group was unbalanced now, the hat would never allow a third person to return. Only the same number that came in could go back. Regina had been planning this all along and decided that Jefferson was to be her sacrificial lamb.

The portal jumper could think of only one person at this moment. "Grace. I promised her I would come home."

"You shouldn't make promises you can't keep," Regina spat.

He should have known better. Should not have ignored that when dealing with The Evil Queen you are always expendable. Now his worst nightmares were coming true. Grace would lose both parents and grow up an orphan. Perhaps she might even think he had abandoned her.

Jefferson tried to stop the two from escaping without him, but Regina used her black magic to hold him in place. He could not follow them.

"You were right, Jefferson," she gloated, her father looking on uncaringly. "You don't abandon family."

With those ironic words she and her father disappeared into the looking glass, leaving him behind to face the wrath of the Queen of Hearts. Jefferson barely moved a muscle as he was taken to regent's presence. He was still in shock at the betrayal and the loss of his most precious daughter.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Emma woke up from the drug induced sleep. She was bound and gagged and left to sleep on the sofa. She looked around for a way out of her predicament. Next to her was the tea cup she drank from. Emma was about to grab it with her tied up hands when she saw another person in the room

Valerie Kensington, who was also bound and gagged but fully awake. Immediately Emma was filled with indignation that this girl had disobeyed her orders and followed Mary Margaret to this place. Now Emma had two people she had to safeguard, not just one.

The dark haired young woman motioned for Emma to continue. The sheriff dropped the cup onto the carpeted floor. Valerie tossed a cushion on top of it and Emma, keeping an eye on the door, slammed her feet down on it, breaking the cup into large pieces. The pillow had muffled the means of their escape. She took one of those pieces to cut her bonds and once freed she cut Valerie loose, as well.

"What are you doing here?" she mouthed irately. "I told you to go home."

"I was worried about Ms. Blanchard," Valerie replied, mouthing with barely an audible whisper. "She helped me, it's my turn to help her."

"That is _my_ job and now you've made it twice as difficult," Emma replied. "Now stay here."

"Not with that maniac on the loose," Valerie retorted. "He's insane. He keeps flashing a gun at me. All he talked about was hat this and dragon boyfriend that. I don't have a boyfriend, certainly not a drag…"

"Would you be quiet?!" Emma mouthed angrily. "Stay! Here! Do not get in my way. If he starts shooting I don't want you getting caught in the middle. Understood?"

Valerie ultimately agreed albeit most reluctantly and not without some grumbling over the matter. "I'm not helpless, you know. I've survived The Hawk, escaped a scientist who wanted to dissect me, helped stop Pixie Hollow from freezing over, fought pirates, and rescued the queen from a particularly nasty crow with a love of shiny things."

"That's enough," Emma replied, cutting her off. "He! Will! Hear! You! Now be quiet!"

The girl protested by sitting angrily in the nearest chair and crossing her arms over her chest.

Now Emma wished she had never freed the young woman. At least if Valerie were still bound and gagged she would not present any kind of threat to Jefferson thus keeping her safe.

Emma noticed a telescope in the room behind the grand piano. It was facing down towards the city and not up as one would expect. She peered through it and discovered that it was pointing directly at the Sheriff's station. This Jefferson person had been spying on her.

Next to the telescope were newspaper clippings in a folder. One was a small article about the clock tower suddenly working. Another was front page article detailing how Emma had damaged the town's historic sign. What truly disturbed her were the several others concerning Valerie and her trial. One newspaper clipping featured a prominent photo of Valerie. It was circled with the word "magic?" written next to it.

As much as Emma wanted to know what was going on, more than anything she wanted to find Mary Margaret and get both her and Valerie back to safety. She motioned for the Kensington girl to remain in the room while she ventured into the hallway. Valerie rolled her eyes in disgust and whispered, "Fine."

Cracking open the doorway Emma noticed Jefferson in the adjacent room sharpening a pair of shears. He appeared to be occupied by his work and thankfully was alone. She crept out into the hallway to search for her friend and roommate. Unfortunately a creaky floorboard gave her away and the sheriff ducked into the next room shutting the door behind her. A muffled yell caught her attention. She whirled around on her feet and found Mary Margaret, bound to a chair and gagged.

She quickly released the woman from her captivity and asked what happened. It turned out that Ms. Blanchard had found a key in her cell which allowed her to escape. On her way out of town this man grabbed her from behind and dragged her to this place where she was tied up.

"We need to get out of here," Emma instructed. "First I have to get Valerie."

"She followed me here?" asked Mary Margaret, surprised that the girl had not stayed home as ordered.

"Well that's two of us she disobeyed," Emma observed. "Let's go before it's too late."

Unfortunately it already was. In the hallway was the man they were trying to avoid. He held Emma's sidearm in hand and had it pointed at both of them.

"I see you found Spot," he said with a touch of sardonic irony in his voice. "And she brought a friend." Jefferson then produced Valerie at gunpoint to show that he had the upper hand in every possible way. He instructed Emma to tie up both Mary Margaret and the Kensington girl. With no other recourse Emma Swan complied with his demands. She would have to wait for an opportunity to escape.

 **~O~**

"I'm sorry," Emma told Mary Margaret and Valerie as she secured them both to furniture before following their captor out to another room.

Mary Margaret's wrists were taped to the armrests while her feet were secured to the legs of the chair at Jefferson's instruction. She could not move. Valerie was tied with her arms behind her back and her feet bound to the leg of the couch. Like the schoolteacher she was also gagged. This did not stop the girl from attempting to find a solution to her predicament. _If Emma can do it so can I_ , she reasoned.

With Jefferson and the sheriff gone Vidia twisted and squirmed until she fell off the sofa. Her legs remained tied to the sofa's wooden leg but otherwise she suffered no injury. Unable to move without assistance she stopped squirming and began looking around for something to help her escape. Something that could cut through this blasted tape that was holding fast.

Unfortunately, there was nothing readily available. Now she would have to do this entirely by her wits.

 _Okay, Vidia. Think. How would Tinker Bell solve this problem?_ she asked herself. Nothing immediately came to mind. She rattled her brain for what seemed like an hour trying to understand Tinker Bell's method of deduction but to no avail. Meanwhile Jefferson and Emma carried on a conversation in the other room which seemed to fill in some blanks for Vidia. Though she couldn't hear all of it clearly, a few bits and pieces filtered into room where she and Mary Margaret were held captive.

"I get it, you think you're The Mad Hatter," Emma concluded.

 _Of course, that's why the hats seemed so familiar!_ Vidia suddenly remembered hearing the stories of _Alice's Adventures in Wonderland_ and later it's sequel _Through the Looking Glass_. Dr. Martin Griffiths read both books to Lizzy his daughter chapter by chapter as a bedtime story when she was ten. Vidia, Tinker Bell and their friends listened with rapt attention to the story of a young girl who found herself in a land with bizarre logic and outlandish characters. One of those characters was The Mad Hatter.

Jefferson was then the Mad Hatter of The Enchanted Forest and she remembered his rather downbeat story in Henry's book. This discovery also cleared up for Vidia why he needed someone to make a hat. It was his portal generator. Without it he was stuck here. Vidia didn't have the magic he needed but clearly he thought Emma did. While Vidia tried again and again to reason out how to escape as Tinker Bell would she listened in on more of the conversation. Jefferson confirmed her suspicions.

"What happens when I get the hat to work?" Emma asked.

"I go home," he replied.

* * *

 **~O~**

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

Tinker Bell and Vidia, with the help of the mouse Cheese, tracked down a few Sprinting Thistles nestled among the tall grasses in Rosetta's gardens. The garden fairy hated that they had moved into her precious flowerbed and wanted them removed quickly. Tink did everything but tie down Rosetta to keep her quiet. Her angry rantings and shrill screams would frighten the thistles which would only make the job of capturing them that much more difficult.

Vidia watched carefully as Tink and Cheese silently pawed their way near two of the weeds. Sensing the approach of the two fairies and their mouse companion the thistles began to twist and shiver. Tink's idea was to get close, force them to run and then guide them towards the intended destination of Needlepoint Meadow.

The tactic worked. Two thistles uprooted themselves from the dirt and took off. They ran side by side which allowed Tinker Bell and Cheese to race up behind them within distance of Tink's invention. The little tinker fairy calmly snared the first thistle with one Shepherd's Crook. Tinker bell kept the staff under control with surprising ease.

Vidia flew by Tink's side pretending to closely observe what the blonde fairy was doing. Surprisingly, Vidia found Tink's methods to be more interesting than she anticipated. Though it seemed complicated in fact the implementation was simplicity itself.

"I'm going to fly up ahead," she told the tinker fairy. "I want to see how you hook the other one so I can duplicate the feat myself."

Tink acknowledged her request. "Good idea, just don't spook them or we'll have to start all over again."

"Got it," Vidia answered. Of course, that was exactly what she had in mind. The fast flyer swept up ahead and kept her eyes on the second crook as it was carefully moved into position. Rarely did the Shepherd's Crooks come into contact with the thistles. When they did it was to carefully nudge the weeds towards their home.

Vidia remained at the front, continuing the illusion of observing how Tinker Bell was maneuvering the thistles on the run. She removed from her pocket the small bottle of sunbeam she had taken from the light fairies. When the moment was right she popped open the cork and frightened the thistles with a bright flash. Immediately they became spooked and began to run wildly. Vidia fell to the ground, acting as though she had been knocked to the side.

Tinker Bell howled as she rode passed. The thistles were pulling her and Cheese along behind them. The poor mouse was galloping harder than ever to keep up. The Sprinting Thistles were now heading towards the training area for the animal talents. The disruption would scatter fairy and animal alike. And of course Tinker Bell would get the blame.

Vidia could picture the scene in her head vividly. So much so in fact that she started to cackle with delight. Tink would then get the punishment she so richly deserved. Vidia was enjoying herself so much that she did not notice the thistles had turned around and were coming back. The two weeds had split up, each going in a different direction and forcing Tink to release the Shepherd's Crooks. One fell away, the other got caught within the thistle's many leaves.

By the time Vidia recognized that something had gone wrong it was too late. The two thistles were running directly at her. Before she could escape the thistles smacked bodily into her and Vidia found herself caught, plastered to the front of a Sprinting Thistle held down as much by inertia as by the hooks and thorns on the plant's bodies.

Her plan had backfired and now Vidia was in for the ride of her life.

* * *

 **Thanks for reading. Reviews are always appreciated.**


	31. Chapter 31

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **Season 1, Episode 17, Chapter 5**

* * *

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

"WHHOOAAAAAAHHHH!" Vidia screamed as the frightened thistles raced through several areas of Pixie Hollow. She had no time to think how things went wrong. No time to wonder why the universe seemed to be against her. No time to even consider how to get out of this situation. She could only scream and call for help.

Unfortunately, no one offered her aid. Others who witnessed this scene were so taken by surprise that by the time anyone recognized what was happening it was too late for them to provide assistance.

The thistles bounced, darted and ran in every direction. It left Vidia feeling sick to her stomach. Then the running weeds started down a path that she recognized much to her horror. The thistles were taking her to the Pixie Dust Tree and Queen Clarion.

"…oh no…" If the queen saw this Clarion might only extend her punishment.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Time seemed to pass far too slowly as Vidia kept working on how to break the duct tape which was keeping her fastened to the sofa leg. No matter how hard she tried to break the tape it wouldn't tear. Emma had done an excellent job, though she had little choice in the matter. With Jefferson standing over her shoulders while brandishing a sidearm Swan was forced to wrap both captives up very well.

The clock in the next room had chimed the hours more than once tonight. Vidia understood that it would be morning soon. Claire would come looking for her and find an empty bed thus sending her into a frightened frenzy. Unfortunately Vidia was making no progress in freeing herself to get home before that happened.

The conversation in the other room had stopped as Emma attempted to construct Jefferson's hat as required. When it picked up again Valerie chose to listen. She had all but given up on figuring out her escape and decided just to wait for Emma to seize an opportunity.

Jefferson, as it turned out, had been painfully aware of each day that passed over the twenty eight years since Storybrooke was "founded" by The Dark Curse. Unlike the other residents who lived their lives unaware of their predicament Jefferson lived each day over and over again with complete conscious awareness. Worse yet, he possessed both his original memories and those of his Storybrooke life. Two histories that were in constant contradiction.

"You have magic, now make the hat work," he told her again.

"This is the real world," Emma replied. "There is no magic here."

"A real world," he said correcting her. "How arrogant of you to presume that there is only one."

Jefferson explained that there were an infinite number of real worlds, all pushing up against each other and each had their own rules. Some had magic. Some did not. And some, like this place, desperately needed it. The fairy tale stories that Emma had read didn't just come from the imagination of the author. They were echoes of these other worlds like his own.

Emma asked him why "going back" was so important to him.

In Storybrooke was a young girl named Paige. Her real name was Grace, his daughter, but in Storybrooke her name was Paige. Paige lived with another family thinking they were her real parents. Jefferson watched her day by day tortured with the knowledge that his little girl was so close and yet so far away. If he could take Grace back to the Enchanted Forest she would be freed from the curse and she would remember her father. They could then live as they had before, happily together.

Vidia felt that pain, too. Ever since waking up here she had been living with Tinker Bell and Queen Clarion, both of whom thought they were someone else. The curse created a barrier that Vidia had to live with every day. This was why it was so important for Emma to believe she was the savior and break this blasted curse once and for all.

Anger and frustration welled up inside Vidia. They were directed at both Regina for bringing everyone to this place and towards Emma for not believing. _No, I can't sit back and wait on the sidelines_ , Vidia told herself. _Whether they know it or not everyone in town is depending on Emma… and me._

Feeling reinvigorated Vidia chose not to give up trying to free herself and Mary Margaret. She once again began searching for a solution.

* * *

 **~O~**

WONDERLAND

Jefferson was brought before the Queen of Hearts. The person in this realm he feared most. Her kingdom was like the rest of Wonderland, think about it too much and it could drive you crazy.

Stairs were everywhere and ran in every direction possible and impossible. This included up, down, left, right, sideways and even upside down. Hallways went nowhere and everywhere all at once. Doors opened to one room and then opened to another or into rooms where everything was upside down, including the gravity well. Hovering high in the blue sky large chunks of land hovered as if suspended by wires. This place made no sense at all.

In the queen's open air grand reception hall Jefferson stood before the merciless regent. She wore red as befitting her status as The Queen of Hearts but her identity was concealed by a veil that flowed, quite literally, from head to toe. She was flanked by the Knave of Hearts, a man who listened to her orders which she whispered through a funnel and he in turn announced them to the accused and the gallery that had assembled to watch the proceedings.

"The queen knows you helped steal from her," the Knave said, repeating his monarch's orders.

Jefferson began his response but was cut off, "The queen-."

"That woman's name is Regina," the Knave of Hearts corrected loudly. "There is only one queen."

"My apologies," Jefferson answered.

The Queen of Hearts wanted to know how he got here. Jefferson tried to work a deal, offering an explanation in exchange for being released to go back to his daughter. Dissatisfied with his answer The Queen of Hearts ordered "off with his head."

An executioner bearing a large axe approached while foot soldiers kept Jefferson from fleeing. The glint of steel was all he saw before the axe cut his head from his body. He was surprised to learn that he was not dead. Once more this world's strange logic had come into play.

"If you want your body returned to your head you will tell the queen how you arrived in her world," the knave asked again. Jefferson explained about the hat which opened portals for him, but Regina had stolen it just as she had stolen from the queen. He was asked to make another but he could not because a hat without magic was just a hat.

"Then that is your task," the knave instructed. To that end he was provided with a room and all the materials needed to make as many hats as were necessary until he could fashion one that contained the magic that would allow him to leave. His head was reattached and he began his assignment, not knowing how long it would take until he could fulfill The Queen of Hearts' simple but monumental request.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Vidia continued to struggle against the duct tape. It seemed that no matter how hard she tried nothing was working. _How does Tinker Bell do this?_ she kept asking herself. _This was all so easy when I was a tinker fairy._

Then she had a revelation. Vidia had been approaching this all wrong. Up till now the fast flyer had been trying to reason things out like Tinker Bell. But for two days in her life Vidia had been a tinker fairy herself. That was when Zarina sprinkled the flyer and her friends with a special pixie dust combination which had the effect of switching everyone's talents. Fawn became a light fairy, Tink a water fairy, Rosetta's talent was changed to animal, Iridessa's talent changed to garden, Silvermist had become a fast flyer and Vidia was turned into a tinker fairy.

At first Vidia hated this switch. She held the tinker talent in low regard, but by the end of their adventure with Zarina and the pirates she had come to wield the talent effectively and earned a new respect for the tinker talent and the unique brand of thinking it brought to the table.

 _I don't need to think like Tinker Bell, I need to think like me. Like Vidia the tinker fairy._

That was all the inspiration she needed. She looked at where her bindings were located. She quickly recognized the sofa leg's one weak spot. The floor.

Vidia slid close to the lounger and managed to stand up. Then she squatted down far enough to get her hands around the duct tape that kept her feet fixed to the sofa leg. She slowly, patiently worked the tape down to the bottom of the sofa leg as far as she could. Then with much effort she grabbed the bottom of the sofa with her hands and gently lifted the heavy piece of furniture from the floor.

The lounger was bulky and heavy, but all she needed to lift was one corner and only about an inch or a little less. It took Vidia several attempts before she succeeded. To her relief the tape came free, slipping out from underneath the wooden sofa leg. She put the couch down again and began unraveling the tape from her ankles. Mary Margaret who was watching the whole time marveled at the girl's ingenuity.

After freeing her legs Vidia slipped her arms under her feet. She removed her gag and started chewing on the tape that held her wrists. It tasted terrible but it soon paid off. She was now free. Mary Margaret shifted and mumbled through her gag.

"I gotcha," Vidia whispered. She was nearly done untying Mary Margaret when there was a crash in the other room followed by a plop. Seconds later Emma appeared in the doorway looking surprised. "How did you escape?" she asked Vidia.

"I lifted the sofa and slid the tape underneath the leg," Vidia replied. "How did you get away?"

"I brained him with the telescope."

Vidia smirked. "Nice touch, seeing as how he was spying on me with that thing."

"Both of us. Now let's get out of here before he wakes up."

Both women set about to finish freeing Mary Margaret but this reunion of sorts was short lived. Just as the trio of women were about to make good their escape Jefferson bullied his way into the room and crashed into the three ladies knocking them all to the floor. Ms. Blanchard cried out a warning as she was the first to see him coming. "Emma, lookout!"

When Emma fell the sidearm she had reclaimed from Jefferson slipped out of her hand and slid across the floor. She tried to grab it but Jefferson took hold of her. Vidia leapt onto his back, beating him relentlessly with her fist. The man reached over and grabbed her long hair, tossing the girl off his back and onto the floor where she landed with a thud. Vidia only managed to grasp the man's ascot, ripping it from his neck as she was flung to his side.

The scuffle for the sheriff's sidearm continued as both Emma and Jefferson kept shoving the other away from it. Ms. Blanchard had taken the brunt of the fall when Jefferson had charged in and was still trying to recover her wits. Vidia jumped to her feet and grabbed the weapon. Finally the struggle seemed to be over, but as Jefferson stood he noticed that Vidia had never handled a sidearm before. She held the grip, but never placed a finger on the trigger.

In a flash he grabbed the gun with one hand, ripping it from her grasp. Furious, Vidia balled up her fist and threw a wild haymaker at him but she missed entirely when he took a half step back. The momentum carried Vidia into a wild spin that sent her stumbling to the floor.

The melee had ended with Jefferson once again with the advantage. Sheriff Swan, not wanting to endanger the others any further, had to yield. When Emma got a good look at him without the ascot she was shocked to see a sickening scar that went all the way around the man's neck, almost as if someone had performed some kind of hideous surgery on him. Jefferson leveled the sidearm directly at Emma and donned the oversized top hat she had constructed. He then grinned while saying, "Off with his head," apparently commenting on the scar now visible to everyone in the room.

Mary Margaret Blanchard finally managed to right herself just as Jefferson had gained the upper hand. Standing behind him, she witnessed Jefferson threaten Emma with her own weapon. Instinctively she grabbed a croquet mallet and swung it, hitting the man squarely in the back. He was stunned by the attack. Mary Margaret did not waste the advantage. She promptly kicked him and sent the man crashing through the second story window to the ground below.

"Wow! Where did you learn to do that?" Emma asked Ms. Blanchard. "Did you take kickboxing lessons without telling me?"

"I don't know," she confessed. "I just did it."

"It's because she's Snow White," Vidia explained.

"I don't think so," Emma replied. "I know the story and she wasn't any kind of bad ass."

The three women peered out the window to see if Jefferson had survived the two story fall. What they found surprised them all. There was no body. Just the hat laying upside down. The sheriff scanned the surrounding area but she saw and heard nothing. It was all very strange. Only a few seconds had elapsed from his fall to now. Yet there was no evidence of him anywhere with the exception of the hat.

"Hey, where did he go?" Vidia asked.

Emma replied, "I'm not sure, but let's get out of here before he shows up again."

Neither Vidia nor Mary Margaret had any reason to delay.

* * *

 **Looks like Vidia is no slouch when it comes to putting up a fight. Thanks for reading. Don't forget to leave a review. I like to know what you think of the story.**


	32. Chapter 32

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **Season 1, Episode 17, Chapter 6**

* * *

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

The trunk of the Pixie Dust Tree quickly grew large in her gaze. Vidia was clutching for dear life to the Sprinting Thistle she had spooked. It was supposed to humiliate Tinker Bell, instead it was humiliating her. Now it might kill her.

"Oh no no NO NO…. AAAAAHHHH!"

WHAM!

"…ow…"

The thistle collided with the tree at full sprint. The impact was so jarring it tore Vidia loose from the hold of the thistle's barbs. All Vidia cared about was that the ride was over. Never mind that her body was wracked with pain. Never mind that she felt like every bone in her body was broken. Never mind that her breath had been briefly knocked out of her lungs.

It was over.

Thank the second star it was all over and she had survived the incident bruised if not broken. She could deal with the humiliation. What bothered her most was how it seemed that the universe was out to get her. That fate, like her queen, had chosen its favorite and it was Tinker Bell.

Vidia tried to pull herself off the ground but the intense pain in her body refused to allow it. She cringed, shrieking as the pain tore through her like lightning.

Those who had witnessed the accident had gathered round. Their voices were a distant chorus in Vidia's ears as the throbbing pain took center stage. Vidia looked up and saw bright flashes of light. At first she assumed it was the discomfort she was seeing. Then those lights became the queen of Pixie Hollow. She said something, but Vidia could not understand it.

From the corner of her eye the flyer noticed what looked like Tinker Bell now among the onlookers. She was speaking with Queen Clarion. As the pain subsided the queen approached her. "Vidia, are you alright?"

"I'm fine," she snapped.

"She's sounds okay," Tinker Bell joked.

"Tinker Bell explained what happened," the queen began. "I am pleased to learn that you have finally put aside your rivalry with her and accepted Tinker Bell as your sister fairy."

Those words put such a knot in Vidia's stomach. "She is not my sister fairy," she spat. The last thing Vidia wanted was for anyone to think she had gone soft or had become chummy with that blasted little tinker. Though she wanted to avoid lengthening her sentence, Vidia could not let this stand. In an act of hubris she would refuse to regret Vidia unleashed a screaming explanation of what really happened.

When she was done, the fast flyer expected Queen Clarion to be angry. Instead she only seemed a disappointed.

The Minister of Spring on the other hand was more than irate. "I see she has learned nothing. Perhaps some time banished to the mainland will cool her temper."

"No, Minister, I do not believe that will be of any benefit." Queen Clarion then motioned for Vidia and Tinker Bell to accompany her so they could speak in private.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Though the sun had not yet risen over the eastern horizon, the morning sky had already begun to brighten and a number of sleepy residents woke to the first glow of morning light. It was then that Mary Margaret, Sheriff Emma Swan and Valerie Kensington (or Vidia as she preferred) gathered in front of Jefferson's palatial home. Emma's yellow VW Beetle was in the driveway and covered with a tarp. She handed the keys to Mary Margaret and offered to let her go… if that is what she really wanted.

The schoolteacher was surprised. She had fully expected Emma to force her back to town for trial, something Ms. Blanchard truly wanted to avoid. From Ms. Blanchard's perspective the town had turned against her and Regina seemed poised to win. Leaving seemed like her best option.

Emma tried to convince her otherwise. If necessary Emma would face the trial alone, even if it meant losing her job and Regina won the day. However, she believed their best chance at winning to face it together. To sway Ms. Blanchard into staying Ms. Swan recalled all the good moments the two had shared and all the great advice Mary Margaret had provided to her. It was as if Ms. Blanchard was looking out for her. In a moment that some might call a Freudian slip, Emma Swan said she didn't want to lose her family.

"Family?" Mary Margaret echoed.

Emma had spent her entire life moving from one foster home to another or from one orphanage to another. She never had anyone she could count on until she met Mary Margaret. Ms. Blanchard was the closest Emma ever had to a family and she didn't want to lose that.

Vidia understood. "Ms. Blanchard, listen to her. I ran away once. I thought I was being so smart. Thought that I didn't need friends because they just got in the way or would stab me in the back. But the truth was you can't run away from your problems, they stay with you wherever you go. Then one day I found out who my real friends were. Turns out they were right in front of me all along. Together they helped me face down my difficulties and overcome them. My life has been so much better for it."

"Hey, if you won't take my word for it then take hers," Emma said.

Just then the clock tower sounded the hour. The arraignment would begin soon. Emma looked directly at Mary Margaret and asked, "What's it going to be?"

 **~O~**

A Mercedes-Benz pulled up to the Sheriff's station in Storybrooke. This car belonged to Mayor Regina Mills and today she felt especially good. Today would be her greatest victory. She had placed the key in Ms. Blanchard's cell last night and had carefully maneuvered public opinion against Ms. Blanchard so strongly that her nemesis from the Enchanted Forest would have no choice but to run. Of course, Regina knew that when someone tries to leave Storybrooke something bad always happens to them.

Regina fully expected that a terrible fate had befallen the person she hated more than any other: Mary Margaret Blanchard, or as she was known in the Enchanted Forest, Snow White. Crimson lipstick painted a cruel and triumphant smile on Regina's mouth as she entered the Sheriff's Station fully expecting to see an empty cell.

That cruel, crimson smile fell into disbelief.

"Hello, Madame Mayor," Ms. Blanchard greeted. Mary Margaret was still in her jail cell reading the newspaper. The front page had her own face printed on it with the words "HEARTLESS" just above as a descriptor.

"My client is not receiving any visitors," the mayor was told by Blanchard's legal representative, Mr. Gold.

Regina asked to speak with him outside. Her fury was more than palpable. "You said she would be gone," the mayor hissed, chiding him. Mr. Gold had been her partner in this crime of character assassination against the schoolteacher. "You told me if I put the key into her cell she would leave Storybrooke for good."

Mr. Gold smiled and brushed away her fury at him with a single, calm retort. "It would seem that Sheriff Swan is more resourceful than we first imagined."

"I hired you because you promised results."

"And results you shall have," he responded. While Ms. Blanchard had not suffered a grim fate from trying to leave this town the evidence stacked against her was insurmountable. The trial would go forward and Ms. Blanchard would be convicted of murder. Regina would have her victory, it would just take a little more time.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Vidia snuck back into her room. No one was awake just yet. She had been dropped off by Emma who was returning Ms. Blanchard to the Sheriff's Station. When approaching the house where she lived Vidia noticed a car parked in the front. It belonged to Hartley Winter. Apparently he had stayed the night.

"Well, good for them," Vidia remarked. "Maybe now I can get those two married off for good." She recalled the many weeks of nonstop planning and preparation that had been going into the wedding between Queen Clarion and Lord Milori. Though for some strange reason she could not remember if it ever took place. Her memories of the pending event inexplicably just stopped days before it was set to take place. Then Vidia suddenly felt uncomfortable when it dawned on her that Claire and Hartley were engaged in relations in the very same house where she and Tinker Bell were sleeping. In the very next room, in fact.

"You would think those two would know better."

After ascending the stairs, Vidia had stopped and stared at Claire's closed bedroom door. Her level of discomfort increased as she thought more about what had been going on behind those doors without her knowledge. She even wondered how long this had been going on. For the first time in months Vidia wished she could live on her own again.

Sometimes ignorance really is bliss.

Her eyelids drooped and Vidia nearly fell from her bed. She had been sitting on the edge of the mattress contemplating the events of that night. The excitement and resulting adrenaline rush had slowly drained from her body and in its place came exhaustion. The dawn was breaking and Claire would be rising with the sun.

She lay in bed and contemplated what Jefferson had said earlier that night. That there were an infinite number of worlds all pushing up against each other, all with their own rules. Some of these realms had magic and some did not, like this place.

"Our world is one of them," she concluded. "One of many."

Then she remembered something he had told her directly. "He's been to Pixie Hollow before!"

If he could take his daughter back home and free her from the curse, then maybe it could do the same for her and the other fairies who were brought here by Regina. She needed to get back to his house and find that hat. If it worked then she and the others could finally go home.

The exhaustion, however, had taken its toll. Moments after the epiphany Vidia was fast asleep.


	33. Chapter 33

**Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **A Disney Fairies / Once Upon A Time Crossover**  
 **Season 1, Episode 17, Chapter 7**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Claire's hand stumbled from under the covers and reached out for the alarm clock that sat next to her bed and pressed the button which shut off the alarm. Every morning she woke with the alarm to begin her day. This morning, she did not. Instead, she rolled over rested her arm across the body which lay next to her. This was Hartley Winter, her boyfriend and lover.

Claire had vowed to herself never to let him stay overnight. It was a most important promise to Claire. As a mother she was determined to maintain the appearance of propriety in front of her girls. She did not want to contradict her rules with inappropriate behavior.

Yet last night she did exactly that. After the girls were asleep she and Hartley found themselves in each other arms and then soon afterwards in her bed. Her better judgement told her no, but the overwhelming romantic feelings she had towards him told her yes. Those feeling stemmed from the immense gratitude she had for his help in throwing Tina's party.

When Claire finally woke she wiped the sleep from her eyes and squinted at the time on her clock. She quickly bolted upright. "Hartley wake up!" she yelled. "It's late. We overslept."

"Hunh?" he groaned before rolling over to his side.

"Wake! Up!" Claire said again, shaking him.

He stirred. Groggy, he asked, "Claire, what time is it?"

"We overslept by nearly an hour," she hissed. "My girls will be waking up soon. You said once the deed was done you would be gone. Now get dressed and get out!" Claire shook him again to roust him from bed and inadvertently sent him flying to the floor where he landed with a loud thud.

"Be quiet," Claire shushed. "The girls will hear you."

Hartley stood, naked as she was. "Where are my pants?"

"Here!" Claire grabbed his trousers off the floor, slinging them across the room right into his face. She then slid on her own underwear, but they didn't fit properly. "What is wrong with these things, why won't they cooperate?"

"Um, dear, you're putting on my boxer shorts," Hartley carefully informed her.

She stopped for a second to inspect the ill- fitting undergarment and realized that Hartley was correct. "Uuuggh!" Claire growled as she slid off the boxers and then grabbed her own panties, slipping them on quickly. Hartley, meanwhile, quietly pleaded for his boxers.

"Uh, dear. My underwear. Sweetheart. Claire."

"Well don't just stand there gawking," she complained, not hearing his pleas. "Get dressed."

Then came a sound which sent shivers of anxiety up and down Claire's spine. Someone was using the shower in the hall.

"Oh God, they're already awake." Claire clasped her brassiere, then tossed on the terrycloth robe and fuzzy slippers so she could check on who was up and about in the house. "I promised myself this would never happen. This is all your fault, you know," she said, snapping at Hartley who was mostly dressed now.

"My fault?" he asked, incredulous. "You were the one who insisted on inviting me up here."

"Well you didn't have to be so damned accommodating, you horny bastard!"

Claire left the room, nearly slamming the door behind her.

"Well that was uncalled for," Hartley said to the empty room.

 **~O~**

Claire snuck around the hallway. She poked her head into Valerie's room. The young brunette was fast asleep. Then she peered into Tina's room. Penny was resting comfortably but Tina was not in her bed. Claire knocked carefully on the bathroom door.

"Tina, is that you?"

"Mom? Uh, yeah."

"Okay, sweetie, take your time."

Claire padded back to her own bedroom. She opened the door to find a fully dressed Hartley Winter tying up his shoes. "The coast is clear. Hurry."

Hartley grabbed his coat and followed Claire out into the hallway and down the stairs.

"Hurry! Hurry!" she kept prodding. "Come on, before anyone sees you."

Claire opened the door, expecting him to make a hasty exit. He didn't. "What are you waiting for?"

"A goodbye kiss," he answered.

"OUT!" Claire shouted, shoving him through the doorway. With Hartley out of the house unseen Claire stopped to catch her breath. A second later she heard a timid knock at the door. She opened it found Hartley standing there.

"I said go away!" she told him.

"You still have my boxer shorts," he informed her.

"I'll mail them to you," she spat, trying to slam the door on him.

Hartley pushed the door open even against her best efforts. "You have them in your robe pocket," he said, pointing.

"What? No I don't." Claire fished through the pockets of her robe and found that they were exactly where he said they were. Frighteningly, they boxers were partially visible. "Gak!" Claire grabbed the men's undergarment and threw them into Hartley's face, shoving him back and away in the process. She was about to close the door once more when she poked her head outside and yelled, "Don't put those on out here, go home and do that." Hartley tried to plead his case. "Claire, the zipper is most uncomfortable. You don't know what it's like for a man in this situation."

"Well, deal with it," she countered. Claire nearly slammed the door shut, but stopped herself just a hairsbreadth before silently shutting the front door.

Claire felt exhausted and the day was only ten minutes old. She went to the couch to catch her breath, but spotted the clock on the living room wall. It reminded her that time was not on her side. "Oh crap!" She raced up the stairwell, her feet pounding on every step until she reached the second floor hallway.

She stopped momentarily to ask herself, "Wait? Did I just tell him not to put on his underwear outside? Oh forget it, Claire. You are running late. If the girls ask, it was the alarm clock."

 **~O~**

While her mother showered, Tina sat on the floor of the shared bathroom in the hallway. All the food she had eaten late last night had just been thrown up. Her stomach felt awful. This was a frequent occurrence and had been for some time now.

In her hand was a new pregnancy test.

"Psst, are you there?" came a young voice. It was Penny, she had woken to find her friend missing.

Tina opened the door, letting the slender girl in. As before, Penny had supplied the latest testing device. Like the last time, it was positive. Anxiety boiled up in Tina's body. She looked down at her clothes. Her pants had been getting a bit tight recently and for the first time she noticed a slight bulge in her belly.

Despite the increasing evidence, Tina kept trying to deny the obvious. She repeated the same mantra over and over again trying to convince herself that she was fine. Every time she repeated her denial, the less she was able to believe it. Finally, she broke down and accepted the undeniable. Her one time dalliance with the boy Clarence had led directly to this.

Her future was now in doubt. Graduating high school, college, a career as a mechanical engineer. Then another thought struck her. Babies are expensive and the family was suffering money problems as it was. The added costs of an infant could cost them their house.

But before all of that, there was one other hurdle. Telling Claire. The moment she realized this, Tina recognized that there was only one possible outcome. "Mom is going to kill me."

 **~O~**

* * *

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

Clarion, Vidia and Tinker Bell stood off to the side to conference in private. Tinker Bell was enraged that Vidia had tried once again to humiliate her. Clarion, though, decided that a simple punishment would be an exercise in pointlessness.

"Why would you do such a thing?" Clarion asked.

"Because Tinker Bell destroyed Spring and was never punished for it," Vidia spit. "I had to chase the thistles but she got to go to the mainland."

"Yes, dear, but Tinker Bell atoned for her mistake," Clarion reiterated. "As I recall you did nothing to mend the damaged preparations. Instead, you did your best to convince us that Tinker Bell's solutions would fail."

Vidia just grunted and turned her back to the royal.

"Gee, Vidia, if its help you needed you just had to ask," Tinker Bell said, her anger melting into pity. "I'll be glad to lend you a hand."

"I don't want your help," the irate flyer yelled. "I want you punished for what you did. I want all of Pixie Hollow to know you were the villain and not the hero."

Clarion sighed. The queen dismissed Tinker Bell and then spoke privately with the fast flyer. "Why do you wish her to suffer your punishment?" she asked.

"It's not fair," Vidia howled. "I never made her chase the thistles, I just gave her the idea."

"But you did set free the two she captured," Clarion clarified. "In doing so you did contribute to the stampede which nearly prevented Spring from coming to the mainland. Obviously you intended for her to fail."

"I'm the most talented fairy in Pixie Hollow," Vidia said. "What makes her so special? Why does she get preferred treatment?"

Vidia sat down angrily, crossing her arms in front of her chest. Clarion sat down beside her and with a gentle voice said, "She is not receiving preferred treatment, Vidia."

"Then why did she get to go to the mainland?"

"Her reward wasn't just for fixing what she had broken. I chose to let her go because unlike the other fairies Tinker Bell needed to accept who and what she was."

"Whoopy, she's a tinker fairy," Vidia said with disdain in her voice. "What's the big deal?"

"To be happy in life each of us must accept and understand who we are and where we belong in the world," the queen explained. "Tinker Bell expressed dissatisfaction with her lot in life because, like you, she believed others were receiving preferred treatment."

"She is nothing like me," Vidia growled.

"Actually, I believe you and Tinker Bell are more alike than you know."

"What!?" Vidia shrieked.

"You are both highly talented, are the best in your respective guilds, both of you are very competitive and each of you have trouble accepting failure," Clarion told her. "And both of you need to find out who you are and where you belong in this world in order to be happy and feel useful."

"I know exactly who and what I am."

"Are you certain?'

"Yes!" Vidia shouted back.

"Then why do you resent Tinker Bell so much?"

"Because she took…" Vidia cut herself off, realizing what she was about to say. That Tinker Bell took what was most important to her, her status as the most talented fairy in Pixie Hollow. Without that title what was she? Who was she?

"Took what?"

"Nothing."

"Are you certain?"

"I'm the most talented fairy in Pixie Hollow, not her," Vidia shouted, the force of her voice originating from the very depths of her body. Even her wings fluttered and she briefly took flight in a fit of anger. She set back down again, her eyes mere slits as she physically manifested the bitterness she had been feeling since Tinker Bell's arrival. "That is who I am and she has no right to take it from me."

"Dear, you must accept that you no longer hold that distinction," Clarion said softly. "And that is the issue, isn't it? For so very long you have defined yourself as the most talented among us, and now that someone else holds that title you are at a loss to know where you fit in."

"I didn't need to fit in," Vidia grumbled. "Or haven't you heard, I don't live with my guild anymore."

"Vidia, sweetheart, everyone needs to know where they belong. Tinker Bell was rewarded not to humiliate you or deny her any punishment, but because she finally accepted who she was. She finally felt comfortable in her own skin. And from there she will be able to find her own place in our society."

"That doesn't even make any sense," Vidia answered at the seeming contradiction. "How can she find her place if she already found it?"

Clarion laughed. "Accepting who you are is not the end of the journey, it is only the beginning. And that is what you must do. Accept who you really are. You are more than just the fastest fast flyer or the greatest talent. But you must learn what that is so you can begin your life's journey."

"Of course you would say that. Tinker Bell is your favorite," Vidia groused.

Clarion sighed. "She is not my favorite," the queen answered. "You are. And you have been since your arrival."

Vidia was shocked by that revelation. "Hah! Then I must be a huge disappointment."

"I am sometimes disappointed in your actions, but I have never been disappointed in you," Clarion said. "You are destined for something truly great, but first you must become comfortable within your own skin before that can happen."

Vidia quirked a very disbelieving eyebrow in the queen's direction. "And you've waited this long for something to happen? Is that what you would have me believe?"

"I can be a very patient queen."

Vidia just harrumphed.

"My dear, you have lived under the belief that what made you special was being the most talented fairy in all of Pixie Hollow. But that was a false assumption as such titles are often fleeting. What makes you so wonderful is something entirely different."

"And what would that be?"

"You must discover it for yourself, Vidia."

"Hah! I knew you were going to say that. You have no idea."

"It is different for everyone. You are at war with yourself, my precious Vidia. Like Tinker Bell you must first find peace within yourself. Then, and only then, can you finally discover what will make you happy."

"Okay, so if it is that important why is it so hard?"

"Because self-discovery _is_ important in such matters. If it were easy, then the journey would be meaningless."

"Metaphorical nonsense," Vidia chided. "It still doesn't answer why Tinker Bell got her little reward and I had to do all the dirty work."

"Perhaps I was a bit too harsh," Clarion admitted. "I apologize."

"Thanks for nothing. The work is half done."

"Then the work is half undone."

"Pfft!"

"My dear Vidia, I am going to rescind your previous punishment," Clarion announced.

"HAH! I knew you would say… uh, did you just say 'rescinded?'"

"Yes, dear."

A smile slowly stretched across Vidia's face. "Then I'm not responsible for the thistles. But who is going to take them back to Needlepoint Meadow?"

"You are."

"You just said it wasn't my responsibility!" Vidia roared. "You lied!"

"No, dear, I am putting you in charge."

"What does that mean?"

Clarion explained that Vidia was no longer responsible for personally taking each thistle back to Needlepoint Meadow. Instead, she was now going to be in charge of a detail of fairies, which she could select, who would return the thistles under Vidia's authority and guidance.

"So I can select anyone? Even Tinker Bell?"

"Yes, dear, even Tinker Bell."

"Hah, that sappy tinker is going to rue the day she crossed paths with me," Vidia cackled, all but licking her lips.

"I have not given you authority so you can abuse it," Clarion sternly warned her. "As a leader, you just learn to lead others by serving others."

Vidia looked fitfully confused.

"My dear, you must put those under your command ahead of your own," Clarion instructed.

"So why put me in charge at all?"

"Because I see that capability within you," the queen replied.

"What about all that nonsense about learning my path in life?"

"It is still valid," Clarion replied. "When you discover what will make you happy, fulfilled and content you will realize that every moment of your life in search of it was well spent. I am merely giving you a nudge in the right direction. Learning to be responsible to others and for others is only the first of many steps."

"Uh huh! So if I find my happiness, my fulfillment will you give me a reward just as you did Tinker Bell?" Vidia asked, as if trying to box in her queen, fully believing she would not.

Clarion upended her expectations. "Yes. Because you will have earned it."

 **~O~**

* * *

WONDERLAND

Jefferson sat in the middle of a large room. The Queen of Hearts had kept her promise. His head had been reattached to his body via a gruesome surgery that left a profound scar all around his neck. But that was only the beginning of his collapse into lunacy, for he had been tasked with making a hat capable of tapping into Wonderland's ambient magic and opening a portal back to the Enchanted Forest.

His first attempt failed. Jefferson was not deterred and he tried again. His second attempt also failed. As did his third, and fourth, and tenth, and hundredth and thousandth. In fact, he had woven several thousand hats, all unable to perform the deed required. His constant failures and the drive to return to his daughter had driven him to brink of insanity. The room where he worked and lived was filled throughout with unworkable hats. Thousands of them. And where there were no hats there were bolts of fabrics, spools of thread and other materials to continue making thousands more until his work was complete.

To keep him going, to never let doubt creep into his mind he developed a mantra. One meant to embolden him, but which had since become a chant of insanity. "Get it to work! Get it to work! Get it to work! Get it to work!" With every stitch, every pull of the thread, every movement of his hand he muttered, then barked, then cried out this simple mantra. To the point that it took over his mind and he was unable to think of anything else.

Jefferson was no longer simply a hat maker or a portal jumper.

"GET IT TO WO-ORK!"

He had become the Mad Hatter.

 **~O~**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

A glimpse of the clock reminded Claire that time was not on her side. She flew down the stairs to prepare breakfast. Today she showered and dressed before cooking. A change of her usual routine. It felt unnatural to her.

"Girls, come and get your breakfast. We have to go!" she called from the kitchen.

There was no immediate response.

"Tina? Valerie? Penny?"

"Mom!" came a timid little voice from the living room.

Claire recognized that voice. It belonged to Tina. But it carried with it a tone betraying need. A need originating from something gone wrong. Something only Claire could fix. Her maternal side kicked in and she whisked herself from the kitchen to rush to her little one's side. But the businesswoman side of her also spoke up, berating her that this would only push her further behind schedule.

"What is sweetie?" Claire asked as she entered the room. "Tina, you're not even dressed. What's wrong?"

Standing before her was the little blonde and her friend, Penny. Tina stood in her warm pajamas and tank top. She looked terrible distressed, as if something terrible had just happened. "I was sick again this morning," she spoke, her voice quivering.

"Oh, honey." Claire ran to her and put her hand to the little one's forehead. "Are you sick? You don't have a temperature."

"No, I…," Tina choked down her words. "Uh…, it's…"

"What is it, sweetheart?"

That's when Tina presented her with a small, white object. "What's this?" Claire took it. Her first thought was that it was some kind of thermometer. What it really was, did not immediately register. But when it did Claire was unable to believe it.

"A pregnancy test? Tina, what kind of joke is this? You are not pregnant!" Then she looked over at Penny. "Is this yours? How could you let my daughter do this?"

"It's not hers, Mom," Tina whimpered. "It's mine."

"No. It's your sister's. Valerie would do something like this, wouldn't she?"

Tina shook her head. "Mom, please. I need you." The girl pulled up her shirt and showed Claire the slight, but visible bulge in her belly. As the realization of Tina's situation morphed across Claire's face, Tina's balled up in terror while tears began to slither down her cherubic little cheeks.

Claire stood up, unable to fully accept what her youngest was telling her. "W-who?"

"Clarence," Tina confessed.

"When?"

"A few months ago. I didn't think it would…, it wasn't supposed to be. It was just one time, I swear. This wasn't supposed to happen."

Claire stood back, the weight of it all crashing down upon her. She felt for a chair, but found none and sat down upon thin air. She fell to the floor, disbelief warring with acceptance. The harried mother looked down at the pregnancy test. It gave a positive readout. This explained everything, Tina's morning sickness and strange swings in mood, her odd appetite which had been showing up recently. Claire had been blind to it all because she still viewed her little girl and as "her little girl." A child so young and innocent such a thing couldn't possibly happen.

A thousand and one thoughts barreled through her mind. How this could happen? Who was to blame? Clarence, obviously. Cost of an infant, which she knew to be astronomical. But buried in this whirlwind of thoughts came some which were embarrassingly selfish. What would this mean for her and Hartley? Claire chased such horrid questions from her mind and instead she focused on the moment.

Her baby, her sweet young child, was about to have a baby of her own.

She burst into tears, putting her arms up to cover her face.

"Mom?!" came Tina's plaintive voice. "Are we going to be okay?"

Deep inside a well spring of anger shot up and out of Claire. She wanted to yell and scream and decry this child. Tell her that no, they would not be okay. That she had been wholly and utterly stupid. That her little one night stand was going to cost them all dearly. Their home, their well-being, their security. "We're all going to end up under a bridge because of you."

But she could not bring herself to say such terrible things to this young girl who stood before her. A girl so young she needed help dealing with this present situation. So afraid of what was to come she couldn't stand alone.

Claire threw out her arms and embraced Tina. And Penny. "We'll be okay, honey. We will be just fine."

She felt like she was lying. She was. But what else could she do? Silently, though, Claire knew what was most likely to happen and she whispered to herself, "Are we going to be okay?"

* * *

 **Sigh! When I started this "episode" I had Vidia's backstory all planned out. When I got to this chapter and the big finale, I forgot what it was. Yup, I completely forgot. Every time I stepped away and then came back to it, nothing. It is forever lost to the mists of time. So I had to put together some kind of finish that flowed naturally from the story. I'm not entirely happy with it, but hopefully it works.**

 **For those who are still following, thanks. If you've given up hope, my sincerest apologies.**

 **Anyway, this finishes Episode 17 of Season 1.**


	34. Chapter 34

**Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **A Tinker Bell / Once Upon A Time Crossover**

Season 1, Episode 18, Chapter 1

 _The following occurs during the events of the eighteenth episode of season 1 titled "The Stable Boy."_

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE (one week earlier)

Regina was holding a ring, one which she contemplated with both nostalgia and pain.

"Remembrances of things past?" a voice asked her. Regina was snapped from her reverie. Mr. Gold stood in the doorway of Regina's office. The man was out on bail and had come to her. "I need a favor."

"You want a favor? From me?" Regina asked, stunned.

He wanted her to get the charges of assaulting Moe French against him dropped.

Regina, was of course, amused by this entreaty. "Why should I do that?" she asked.

"Because I can help you with your Mary Margaret problem," Gold replied. Mary Margaret was a thorn in Regina's side and had been since their days at Leopold's kingdom within the Enchanted Forest. Regina was well aware that Mr. Gold retained his memories as Rumpelstiltskin. So he was equally well aware of the rivalry which existed between the two women.

It had become common knowledge in Storybrooke that Mary Margaret was carrying on an affair with David Nolan. David's wife, in this world, Kathryn had been publically embarrassed by it. Mary Margaret, who tried to reclaim her good name by staying as far away from David as possible, was still living with the stigma as a home wrecker. The problem was that she was still attracted to David for reasons she could not fully understand.

Mr. Gold suggested that this would provide motive enough for Mary Margaret to want Kathryn out of the way. "I could arrange for something tragic to happen to Kathryn Nolan," the pawn broker offered. Mary Margaret would of course be the logical suspect and take the blame. Sheriff Swan would have no choice but to jail the schoolteacher and conduct an investigation. Her reputation completely ruined, Mary Margaret would want nothing more than to flee before any trial could come to pass. Regina could quietly slip one of her skeleton keys into Ms. Blanchard's cell so she could then leave the city. "And we all know what happens to people who try to leave Storybrooke."

"Why should I trust you?" she asked him.

"Because I always honor my agreements," he answered.

This much was certain. Rumpelstiltskin was anything if not rigorous in following through on his deals, much to the dismay of his many victims.

Regina smiled. Finally, she would have her victory.

 **~O~**

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

A horse galloped across an open field. Its rider was an attractive young female, full of energy and spirit and joy of heart. She rode the animal bareback. When she came to a stop an older man greeted her. "Well done, Regina," he told her. Regina dismounted the steed and embraced him.

"Thank you, father," she told him. Regina's father had always been very supportive of her and her passions. But there was one person who was not. Her mother, Cora. Cora believed that Regina was too old to be acting so unladylike as to ride without a saddle. She wanted Regina to marry, in Cora's estimation it was high time she did so, yet Regina continued to act more like a man than a lady. No person of breeding would find such qualities attractive. Especially the type of men Cora had in mind, men of high status and rank.

Regina didn't care, she wanted to follow her heart. Unfortunately, Cora had her own means of persuasion. She possessed the powers of the dark magic. When Regina turned away from her, Cora gripped her in a levitation spell, holding several yards above the ground while her daughter's feet flailed for the earth too far away. When Regina continued to refuse, Cora wrapped the young woman in the bridle and pulled it tight threatening to crush the life out of her until Regina gave in, begging to be released.

"Please, mother. I'll be good," Regina pleaded, the air being squeezed from her lungs.

"That's better," Cora said, satisfied that she had made her point. This is what Cora wanted: mindless obedience, all things bending to her will. Regina, Cora believed, would never cross her again.

In fact, her point had fallen on deaf ears. Regina ran to the stables where she found a handsome young man waiting for her. His name was Daniel. He was the stable boy, and Regina was deeply in love with him.

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE (the present)

The hours seemed to pass too slowly. Claire felt as though she were in a daze and was barely able to function the whole day. The revelation that her youngest girl, Tina, was expecting a child of her own, unsettled and distracted her beyond all reason. Her work was sloppy and at times she simply did nothing but stare into the distance, deep in emotional shock.

The poor workmanship did not go unnoticed. Many of her customers were dissatisfied with the end product and Claire had to apologize. She offered to return and make things right, but few wanted her back. Instead, she gave discounts on the work, and in one case collected no fee at all after a rather vicious tongue lashing.

"I… I apologize. There are problems of a personal nature I'm dealing with," she told one person.

"Yeah, well next time leave them at home," the client grumbled. "I can see that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. No wonder your daughter is in such sad shape."

Claire suddenly felt frightened. How could this person know? She bristled and felt like prey backed into a corner. "What?!"

"Valerie is always in so much trouble and now I can see why. You are a poor example of a mother."

Claire felt so much relief. Valerie. Yes. How many times was she arrested? How often was her name in the public eye for doing something foolish? _Oh God, am I a poor mother?_ Claire suddenly asked herself privately. First Valerie's numerous run-ins with the law and now Tina's pregnancy. Where  did she go so wrong?

"Hey, get out of my house!" The client screamed. Claire found herself standing in the person's room, lost in deep thought and reflection. The person who had invited her in to perform work had been yelling at her for almost a minute. "You really are a mess, Mrs. Kensington. You best hope I don't call child protective services. You don't deserve to have children."

"How dare you!" she growled protectively. _Calm down, Claire_. "I am a fit mother. Valerie never got over the sudden death of her father."

"That doesn't exactly speak well of you, now does it?"

Claire was utterly enraged. "Do you have children of your own?" She asked in a fit of indignity.

"No, but that doesn't-."

"Then tell me why I should take advice from someone who doesn't know their ass from a hole in the ground?"

Her client turned so many different shades of crimson, fury rising in his cheeks, fists clenched at the ready for a fight. It was so very obvious that this conversation was just seconds from turning into a brawl. Despite feeling distracted earlier, Claire believed she could take on this idiot in a bare knuckled fist fight. Fortunately, he kept control. "Get out of my house and never come back!" The man hissed.

"With pleasure," she spat. Claire hoped she never had to enter the house of this fool idiot ever again.

 **~O~**

Lunchtime came. Mrs. Kensington barely picked at her food, the fork absentmindedly bouncing up and down on the chicken salad Claire chose as her midday meal at Granny's Diner. The conversation she had with the idiot client echoed through her mind. Claire's knee jerk response, Valerie never got over the sudden loss of her father, kept repeating itself in her thoughts. What did this say about her as a mother that Valerie was so attached to her father that when he passed the girl was unable to find solace and parental attachment with the mother?

 _I wonder if this had anything to do with Tina getting pregnant,_ she mulled in the back of her mind. _Did I not form a strong enough bond with her that she looked for attachment somewhere else? Was I not there enough for either of them? I was doing everything to keep a roof over our heads, it wasn't my fault._

 _Don't do this to yourself_ , Claire told herself again, speaking in the privacy of her own thoughts. _You are a fit mother._

 _Then is why is my life collapsing around me like this_?

Claire had no answer. This bothered her so that she only managed to eat a few bites of her chicken salad before gulping down some lukewarm coffee and moving on to the afternoon schedule.

The lack of proper sustenance at lunch only inhibited her performance further during the rest of the workday. She barely had the presence of mind to schedule an appointment with an OB/GYN at the hospital for Tina. She was able to add it on to the already scheduled appointments she had made for herself and Valerie. At least something worked out as planned.

Then another thought crossed her mind. What about Hartley? Suddenly she fell back into her pattern of doubt and self-loathing that had defined her morning. She felt the psychological shock overtake her mind and body all over again and recriminations became the order of the day.

Claire knew from day one that she was playing with fire. Her loneliness had gotten the best of her and she was more than willing to give herself to this man, Hartley Winter. Their romance moved from the chaste to the physical entirely out of wedlock.

Though Claire had never made such a distinction to her girls when talking to them about sex, the current situation made her wonder if she should have. Could Tina have known? If she did the girl might not have comprehended the difference between two people deeply in love and a simple one night stand.

She tried desperately to put a timetable to when Tina might have engaged in her dalliance, but Claire kept berating herself. _You're just trying to justify yourself_ , she reprimanded. _You set a bad example for her._

 _Did I?_

 _What else was she to think?_

 _What if she didn't know?_

 _Does it matter? You can't be mad at her for what she did while you're having sex with Hartley Winter._

She sighed.

"I have to talk to Hartley," she muttered to herself. "No, wait. I have to find Clarence."

For once she had focus. Clarence was the young man whom Tina had claimed was the father of the baby. She was going to confront him for what he did. Force him to be responsible. It gave her the clarity of thought she had been missing all day.

 **~O~**

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

Clarion wept. Oh what had she done?

A man had appeared in her private office. A human by his basic appearance. Yet he was unlike any human she had ever met. His skin was greenish and sickening to look at. His hair long and disgusting. Everything about him spoke of something evil and untrustworthy.

Then he spoke his name. Rumpelstiltskin. Her mother had warned her about him. Yet she made a deal with him anyway. Clarion was a young and untested queen, still in over her head. She greatly missed her parents with their confidence, wisdom and steady demeanor. Now they were gone. Her father dead at the hands of pirates who sought the great fairy treasury.

Her mother died of a broken heart and tortured soul. She was forced to provide the location of that treasury while she watched as her beloved husband was slowly cooked on a spit by the very pirates who had kidnapped him. Unable to withstand the sight any longer she acquiesced. The betrayal led to much destruction in Pixie Hollow and the death of so many good fairies.

Now it was Clarion who felt the sting of betrayal. Rumpelstiltskin had so easily manipulated her. The young queen was desperate to bring back her parents that she made a deal with the person alternatively known as The Dark One. In exchange for some yellow and blue pixie dust he would retrieve an object stolen by the pirates. The Enchanted Mirror of Incata. The mirror possessed the ability to grant three wishes. Forged of ancient fairy magic, the mirror was placed in the treasury away from prying eyes because for all its potential for good, those wishes could also backfire.

Fairy magic was not meant for selfish ends. If anyone made a wish of the mirror which was not altruistic that wish would turn on its wisher. The results could be subtle, a rebuke of the selfish nature, or it could be catastrophic with consequences far reaching and destructive.

Yet so filled with despair and uncertainty that the new queen of Pixie Hollow ignored all that she knew of The Dark One and the mirror and set the man on a quest to retrieve it for her. Had she only known that her future was far brighter than she could now imagine, the new queen would never made such a terrible bargain.

But she had, and now all she could do was hope that all would turn out well.

* * *

 **New episode, new chapter. Thank you for reading.**


	35. Chapter 35

**Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **A Disney Fairies / Once Upon A Time Crossover**  
 **Season 1, Episode 18, Chapter 2**

* * *

He went by the name of Mr. Smee. A short, stout man with a red cap who was a sailor by trade, but claimed he had the ability to locate rare and hard to find items. It had come to his attention that Queen Regina sought such a thing.

"How could you know?" she asked of him.

"Word travels," he replied. "And it's my job to know." The answer was entirely vague but acceptable to Queen Regina, she had indeed been looking for something with a unique and rare power. It was well within the realm of possibility that this sailor would have heard about it. The question now was whether or not he could deliver on her request.

Smee informed her that he was the boatswain of a ship which traveled to faraway and distant lands. Lands where he had contacts capable of helping him locate whatever it was she needed found. If it existed, he could zero in on it.

At first the queen was reluctant to inform Mr. Smee fully of what she sought. However, Smee could ascertain that she was desperate and played upon it. He carefully maneuvered her with soft words and downward glances to appear non-threatening until she finally opened up about her situation. It wasn't full disclosure, but it was enough for him offer an answer.

"I know of a mirror," he told her. "A magic mirror which may hold your ray of hope, because you see it grants three wishes."

"How?"

"It is made from fairy magic."

"You lie," she bellowed in response. "The fairies of The Enchanted Forest hold no such object. I would have known about it."

Guards marched smartly to the boatswain to remove him from the queen's sight, but he pleaded his case nonetheless. "You misunderstand. These fairies are from another world, an entirely different realm."

Regina stopped and turned on her heels. "Another realm? You can travel there?"

Smee smiled and responded that finding rare objects meant he knew people who could facilitate such far off adventures. "I can get there and get it for you. If it exists."

"If?"

"The mirror is only legend, but you know what they say about legends…"

"They are always born from the seeds of truth."

"Mirror or not, if it can grant you your wish and return what you lost I'll find it," Smee offered with a smile. "For a price."

Regina knew that was coming, but her desperation meant she was willing to offer anything and pledged it to him. Smee nodded before leaving to undertake this important quest for Queen Regina.

 **~O~**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Claire's head was swirling with all manner of thoughts. She remembered how hard it was for her raising her first child. The financial burden was more than either she or Charlie could properly anticipate. They both knew about formula, diapers, doctor visits, wipes, toys, crib and so much more. Yet nothing could have prepared them for how it all seemed to come at them at once and from all sides.

Of course, she had plenty of financial support thanks to Charlie, and his boundless energy and moral support to lean on. Tina would have none of that. Instead she was need all of Claire's assistance. Moral support she could offer; it was the financial support that gave Claire pause. She was having a tough enough time just making ends meet right now. Add in a pregnancy and a baby? It was just too much even for someone as hardworking as her.

Claire was counting on Clarence being the responsible young man she knew him to be. He might be too young to marry Tina, but at least he wouldn't leave Tina and the baby without at least some measure of financial support. Leaving the poor girl to go it alone would be too juvenile even for him.

"He got my baby pregnant, how mature can he be?" she asked herself. Suddenly his stellar reputation acquired some tarnish.

The car came to screeching halt. Claire nearly bypassed her destination, the Storybrooke Post Office. She had hoped to find Clarence here but according to his supervisor he was still out on his delivery rounds. "Please tell Clarence I wish to speak with him after work," she told the Gerald, the local post master, a fat if pleasant man with orange hair and beard to go with his strong brogue. "He can meet me at my place this evening."

"Is something wrong?" Gerald asked, apparently thinking it was related to the boy's work. "Maybe we can fix it here. Was it a missed delivery? Lost mail? Clarence is my best employee."

"Oh no, nothing like that," Claire answered. "It's, um…, a family thing."

Gerald quirked a confused eyebrow. Clarence wasn't family, though the boy was dating Claire's youngest daughter. "Very well," he offered. "I'll send him over as soon as his shift ends. Expect him around six tonight."

"Good! Great! He'll have a big surprise waiting for him," Claire fumbled, trying to obfuscate the truth. "A really. Big. Surprise."

Leaving the post office Claire felt a brief moment of relief. It was immediately replaced by a new anxiety. Now she had to confront Hartley about this new reality. It wasn't going to be a pleasant conversation.

 **~O~**

Not far from the Post Office Sheriff Swan was leaving Granny's Diner when she was joined by David Nolan. David wanted to know if he could visit Mary Margaret at the sheriff's office where she was being kept under lock and key. However, Ms. Blanchard was unwilling to take any visitors at the moment, which David took to mean that it was him she did not want to see.

During his last visit David had a crisis of confidence in Mary Margaret and admitted to her he thought she might be guilty. Now he wanted to apologize to Ms. Blanchard. Emma, however, took him to task over what he had said, berating him for giving up Mary Margaret when she needed his support the most. That was why David wanted to visit with her at the jail. He wanted Mary Margaret to know he didn't think she was guilty. Sadly, the damage was done and there was nothing he could say to undo the past.

Still concerned for Mary Margaret's welfare he offers whatever assistance he can. Sheriff Swan, recognizing just how bleak it looked for Mary Margaret, confesses that it would now take a miracle to save Mary Margaret.

 **~O~**

* * *

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

The next day Daniel met the young Princess Regina near the stables for lunch. A date she had to break because she was obligated to have tea with her mother. The young man was becoming frustrated with how their relationship was being forced to play out: entirely undercover, stealing kisses in dark shadows and meeting at odd hours at the stable or in the forest to avoid being seen.

He wanted to be open about their love to Cora, but Regina did not want to speak a word of it to her mother. Cora was not a woman to be trifled with; she possessed the power of dark magic and showed no hesitation to use it even on her own flesh and blood.

That was what worried young Regina the most. Even if Daniel and Regina could run away it would be all too easy for Cora to find them. Cora had given up a great deal to get to where she was and now it was her intent to put Regina in a position to move up even higher in society. Daniel was a distinct step down, a step backward Cora would not tolerate. He countered that true love was the most powerful magic of all, stronger than even Cora's dark powers.

While the two lovers were speaking a shriek was heard from over the rise. It was a little girl calling for help. She had lost control of her horse and it was galloping away at a breakneck speed. Without a thought for her own safety Regina jumped onto her own horse and gave chase, coming up alongside the runaway mount and bringing it under control.

The girl, gracious to the end, thanked young Regina over and over before announcing her name: Snow White.

 **~O~**

* * *

NEVER LAND ISLAND

"You look wonderful, Clarion." Prince Devon practically gushed as his daughter, now a fine young woman, spun about in her new formal dress made from pixie dust and the finest spun silk. "It seems like only yesterday I was bouncing you on my knee."

"Daddy," Clarion blushed. "I'm not little anymore."

"You would giggle and smile at me so happily. That was your favorite game, too." He sighed. "It is so hard to believe that those days are long gone. Sometimes I wish you could be my little fairy princess just one more day."

"Uh huh. And one more day after that. And one more day after that. And one more day…"

Devon laughed. "Okay, okay, I get the idea. But can you blame me? We had such wonderful times together you and me. It seemed like they would never end. Look at you know, all grown up and ready to rule Pixie Hollow. Your mother and I are so proud of the fine young woman you've grown into. And when you become queen we'll be just as proud as you lead our people."

"Well I hope not just yet," Queen Clarus spoke as she entered Clarion's private bedroom. "You look wonderful, dear. Are you two ready for tonight's performance at Fairy Tale Theater?"

"Yes, Mum," Clarion responded. Devon nodded as well.

"Fine, then let's be off the three of us. I wouldn't want them to hold the curtain forever," Clarus chuckled. "You know how temperamental artist talents can be."

 **~O~**

When Devon spoke his words he wasn't just remembering good times. He was, in his own way, saying goodbye to his daughter. Tonight's performance was to be his last night together with his wife and child. A final evening where all would be well and he could enjoy one last taste of the wonders of family life.

Despite a calm exterior throughout the evening deep inside Devon's stomach twisted with increasing anxiety. A man he had hoped to never see again had reappeared: Rumpelstiltskin.

Many years earlier Prince Devon struck a deal with The Dark One to save the lives of his wife and child, both of whom were destined to be lost during childbirth. Rumpelstiltskin appeared at just the right moment and offered a way to save his family. It was an arrangement wherein Devon would exchange his life for theirs. Strangely, the devious imp did not demand payment immediately.

Instead he intended to collect his "payment" at a later date, giving Prince Devon plenty of time to watch his daughter grow up and be a good father figure to the newborn princess. That later date had finally come.

It had been so long since that night, but to Prince Devon this moment had come all too soon. Not one day passed that he was not reminded of the agreement he made. Every time he saw his wife or child it was a painful reminder of what he had surrendered for them and their safety. Yet despite that he never once resented their existence nor despaired in his own. Instead, he made the most of even the smallest of moments, reveling in their very presence. He sought joy in the most mundane of daily activities with his wife and daughter and took time to remember each one with exquisite clarity.

When Rumpelstiltskin returned Devon asked for a few more days so he could say his goodbyes. He honestly had not expected the giggling monster to give him that extra time, but his request was granted. The Dark One gave Devon precisely one week before he would collect him, but no more. The prince did not ask why The Dark One was willing, but something in his eyes seemed to reveal empathy for Prince Devon and his situation.

The Prince of Pixie Hollow was not going to waste his last few days concerned with Rumpelstiltskin's reasons, and instead arranged for this performance as a gift to his wife and child. A family he would never see again. While Queen Clarus and Princess Clarion were transfixed by the artists on stage, Prince Devon spent more time watching them intently for their reactions to the story being told. He wanted to remember them like this for what little remained of his life: happy and content.

 **~O~**

Ships of pirates had been a plague on Never Land for as long as Queen Clarus could remember. Since the earliest ships men had sought out the location of Pixie Hollow and its legendary treasure. How the world of men learned of the fairy home world no one could remember, but ever since any pirate who sailed the seas searched in vain for the hidden land of the Never Fairies.

For the most part those who found their way to the magical island were too incompetent to pose much of a threat. However, recently one crew proved itself far more cunning and dangerous to Queen Clarus' kingdom and she took many precautions to safeguard her world and people. Prince Devon, who was also the guild overseer for the scout talents, implemented these precautions on the queen's behalf.

Today, like most any day before, Devon set about his normal rounds checking on the scouts who secured the perimeter and monitored the beaches. Today, unlike most any day before, he did not return. Instead he met Rumpelstiltskin at the appointed place and time and turned himself over to the creature who saved his wife and child and who now claimed him in exchange.

Devon was promptly secured in an empty lantern, magically sealed so he could not escape and was taken from Never Land Island to a ship just off shore. Devon had never questioned why Rumpelstiltskin wanted his life as the price for Clarus and Clarion. Now he understood and in learning the imp's intentions Prince Devon realized he had been duped. Rumpelstiltskin turned him over to the very pirates the fairies of Pixie Hollow had been working so hard to repel.

He was to be used as leverage against the queen so the pirates could learn of the location of Pixie Hollow and the whereabouts to the greatest prize in the fairy treasury: The Enchanted Mirror of Incanta.


	36. Chapter 36

**Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **A Disney Fairies / Once Upon A Time Crossover**  
 **Season 1, Episode 18, Chapter 3**

* * *

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

"That will never do." In a puff of magical smoke Cora redressed her daughter from riding crops to a formal gown. Young Regina protested, she had a riding lesson with Daniel the stable boy. "It's cancelled."

"Why, mother?"

"Oh, Regina, you've finally done something right." Those words stung. They were just another painful reminder how her life had been filled with constant disapproval from Cora. As it turned out though, Cora had every reason to be excited in her daughter. The young girl Regina had rescued from her out of control horse was none other than the daughter of King Leopold. He was soon to arrive so he could offer his gratitude for the young woman's bravery. The formal wear was to properly receive the ruler of the land.

Regina was beside herself. She was amazed at the strange confluence of events which transpired to bring the king to their estate. Regina momentarily forgot about Daniel and readied herself for this important meeting.

 **~O~**

When the king arrived in his royal splendor Cora and Regina bowed to him out of respect for his authority and rank. Cora greeted him and then had to coax a star struck Regina to say how honored she was to have him in their home.

"No, it is I who should be honored," King Leopold answered. He was greatly impressed with the young woman who rescued his beloved daughter Snow White from certain death and he willingly paid homage to the person who was so daring and selfless.

Ever since his wife died Leopold had been search of a suitable woman to marry, a woman who could be a good wife to him but more importantly a good mother to his young daughter who desperately needed a maternal figure around. He was convinced that his search was now over and asked for Regina's hand in marriage.

Blindsided by this request Regina couldn't speak. But before she could offer any kind of answer Cora spoke on her behalf. "She accepts," the older woman said, shocking Regina and crushing her hopes for any future with Daniel, the boy she loved dearly.

 **~O~**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

At the jail Mary Margaret Blanchard woke to the unpleasant sight of Mayor Regina Mills hovering nearby. Ms. Blanchard expected their conversation to be a combative one and it did not disappoint. The verbal duel between Mayor and captive turned on an expected revelation.

Mayor Regina Mills had come to give Ms. Blanchard a chance to come clean and make a full confession of her crime. Mary Margaret, however, stood by her innocence in the disappearance and apparent murder of David Nolan's wife, Kathryn. Then came the moment which shocked the young schoolteacher: Mayor Mills smiled, stared into Ms. Blanchard's stern face and said, "Confession or not, one way or another you are leaving Storybrooke for good."

This quiet pronouncement by the mayor confirmed everything that Sheriff Swan had concluded: Mayor Mills was indeed out to get her. Though only a city mayor, Regina wielded her power more like a tyrant than an elected official and Mary Margaret was more than convinced that Regina Mills had the ability to carry out her threat.

Watching the mayor leave the sheriff's office, Ms. Blanchard's optimism about her fate quickly began to deteriorate. There was, though, one beacon of hope. Sheriff Swan.

 **~O~**

* * *

"Hello, Hartley?" Claire rang Hartley Winter on his cell phone. She had driven to the building which housed his office. A panel van outside informed her that someone was there. Mrs. Kensington had every intention of going inside to speak with him, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. She remained in the truck, a prisoner of her own torment.

During the drive to Hartley's office she contemplated how to tell him. She revised her short speech time and time again in her head and with each new version she found something to dislike about it. It was too blunt. Then it beat around the bush too much. Another version was too vague. A different one was too argumentative and the next had no gravitas. Her conscious mind became so sucked into working out the details she missed a yellow light and had to slam on her brakes leaving the truck intruding halfway into the intersection much to the alarm and aggravation of other motorists.

Now that she was here Claire was facing her moment of truth. More than once she dialed up his phone number on her cell only to resist pressing the "send" button to make the call. Claire waffled frequently over whether to deliver her news by voice or in person. Ultimately she chose a third option: procrastination.

Though she had trouble deciding what to say, Claire knew immediately what not to say. As the dial tone trilled into her ear she drilled herself on proper etiquette. _Whatever you do, do not say we need to talk,_ she reminded herself. _He'll know something is wrong. So don't say it. Don't say it, Claire. Don't say it._ "Hello, Hartley? We need to talk." _Dammit_!

"Is something amiss?" he asked her.

"NO!" she bleated. She calmed herself and then continued. "Now why would you think something is wrong?"

"Because when someone begins a conversation with 'we need to talk' it often portends bad news."

She replied with a forced laugh. _Stop it, you sound like a ninny_ , Claire thought, berating herself. "Oh no, no. I'm sorry. What I meant was I think we should talk more."

"I beg your pardon?"

"No. No. That's not it. I mean, what I mean is…, what I'm trying to say is that I think… Hartley, I've loved every moment of our relationship and I hope you have, as well."

"Of course, I have. What seems to be the problem?"

Claire had to think fast. She had boxed herself into a terrible corner and needed an answer. "We're not talking enough anymore," she told him. _Good one_.

"We're what?"

Claire explained to him that she felt that their relationship was heading into a trap. Ever since they had started having sex it seemed to her that their dates were less and less about emotional connections and more and more about physical ones. "I don't want us to burn out and ruin what we have," she finished. "Why don't we get together tonight so we can just talk, like the old days."

"Are you breaking up with me?" he asked her bluntly.

"Of course not, whatever gave you that idea? I just don't want to ruin the romance of our relationship, that's all."

After a short pause he answered. "I understand. Is eight an acceptable time?"

"Eight is perfect. I'll see you tonight." A beep from her smartphone indicated that the call had ended. During the conversation Claire found herself having to lie more and more trying not to callously reveal the news of Tina's pregnancy and how it might impact her dating Hartley Winter. Several times she felt painfull burning bile rising up into her throat. Now that the moment had passed Claire darted from her truck to behind a nearby building and vomited up the remains of her small lunch.

When the chest crushing heaving at last ceased Claire buried her face into the palms of her hands and wept. Claire had lied to the man she dearly loved. She had to drop this bombshell of Tina's pregnancy on him sooner or later, yet when the moment arrived she postponed it with a falsehood. Tonight was never going to be about reconnecting on an emotional level. It was to reveal what she had learned and how it was going to affect them going forward. Would Hartley trust her after such a terrible deception? A quick little lie had now turned into something which might shatter their love affair for good.

 **~O~**

* * *

Hartley Winter was flummoxed. Claire clearly sounded distressed and she began her call to him with those dreaded words "we need to talk." Whether rooted in reality or not, those four words were popularly believed to be the herald of bad news and were often associated with an impending breakup.

Claire's explanation, that they were becoming too sexual and were no longer being as romantic, was Hartley's tip that this was to be her explanation for ending their relationship. He remembered that lovely Valentine's Day evening when she initiated their first sexual experience together. After exiting Hartley's new hot tub, an addition he put in just for her, she disrobed in front of him all but pleading that he found her as physically attractive as romantically attractive.

Now Hartley wondered if that was a mistake. In retrospect he concluded that Claire must have been terribly vulnerable that night, which means he took advantage of her. Perhaps she came to her senses and wants out before more damage is done. Whatever the reasons, Hartley determined that tonight she intended to break the news to him and he prepared himself for it, including a final plea if she would hear him out and to accept her answer no matter what it was.

 **~O~**

* * *

OFF THE COAST OF NEVER LAND

Prince Devon knew death was coming for him. There was no doubting that fact. It had been part of the arrangement he had made with Rumpelstiltskin: his life for his wife and child. How it would come was what occupied his mind. He tried to distance himself from the anxiety of the inevitable by thinking about Clarus and young Clarion. They would carry on without him, though with the cloud of his disappearance and death hanging over them for the immediate future.

Clarus was strong willed and that mettle was inherited by Clarion. Her stubbornness and passion while growing up was a clear indication that. They would be fine without him, but how much he would miss being next to his wife and daughter. He spent this time trying his best to cherish every pleasant memory of the past few decades, from the first stirrings of love for Clarus to the birth of his daughter to the final night they spent together as a family.

It was while recollecting Clarion's birth that he realized something. How could The Dark One have known about these pirates so long ago? Delivering him to the buccaneers who anchored just off of Never Land had to have been planned all along. Or did Rumpelstiltskin simply see an opportunity and took it?

No, the imp must have had some kind of foresight to know that these pirates would be here at this time and would need a fairy as leverage against the queen. Not just any fairy, though, the spouse of the Queen of Pixie Hollow. And random fairy wouldn't have been as useful, but her husband and lover was an entirely different story. It raised the emotional stakes dramatically.

Could this have all been his plan all along? Did this magical creature have the ability to see the future allowing him to take advantage of that knowledge? If that was the case then it would explain why Rumpelstiltskin appeared to him at the very moment of Devon's greatest tragedy and offered him a miracle to avoid it.

The conclusion was obvious: Rumpelstiltskin was in league with these pirates. To what end, Prince Devon did not know, but it could only be Rumpelstiltskin's to advantage and the world's disadvantage. To the more immediate issue, however, was that Devon's moment of weakness was going to cost Pixie Hollow dearly. The pirate captain had already made it known that they intended to empty out the fairy treasury of all its gold and jewels. While the Enchanted Mirror of Incanta was mentioned by name, it was kept in the treasury. Devon shuddered to think of it in the hands of these criminals and cutthroats.

Prince Devon did his best to assure the pirates that Queen Clarus would never betray Pixie Hollow, even with her own husband in their hands. Her devotion to the kingdom was greater than her devotion to him. Simply threatening him with death wouldn't change her mind.

The captain of the pirates took this heart and when Queen Clarus arrived, a prisoner of this despicable crew his manner of death was presented to him and her alike. He was placed upon a spit and hung over open flame where he was allowed to burn ever so slowly until the queen broke and gave up the location of Pixie Hollow and its treasury.

The last thing he could remember was hearing his wife, the Queen, sobbing after hours of watching his nonstop torture. She had indeed broken and wept for her own weakness and what was to happen to her home. Devon held no resentment towards her. He only hoped that Pixie Hollow, Clarus and Clarion would survive the assault and find some way to prosper.


	37. Chapter 37

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **A Disney Fairies / Once Upon A Time Crossover**  
 **Season 1, Episode 18, Chapter 4**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Emma had come to the jail to speak with her friend and roommate Mary Margaret Blanchard. The two were discussing whether or not the incarcerated schoolteacher should seek out a jury trial. Emma was not in favor of this as the evidence against Ms. Blanchard was too strong and there was not enough to support reasonable doubt, the standard of guilt in a criminal jury trial.

While talking the duo were interrupted by Mr. Gold, the pawn shop owner and the man who had only recently occupied this same jail cell on the charges of kidnapping and assault. Gold offered his services to Ms. Blanchard as her defense attorney. Emma was at once suspicious of his intentions… and his qualifications. He was not trained in law, however Gold did convey that he was more than familiar with both the law and the city charter quite well as he spent a good deal of time writing, reading and interpreting legal documents for his shop.

Barring any conflicting evidence to exonerate Ms. Blanchard, Gold's strategy was take advantage of Mary Margaret's reputation as a quiet and unassuming schoolteacher with a good nature who would be incapable of being a murderess. Emma was confounded by his simplistic and, in her opinion, unrealistic idea. Gold justified his defense on his firm belief that perception is everything, both in a courtroom and in life. Convince the jury the accused could not be a killer and she would walk free, even with a mountain of evidence against her.

A second interruption took Emma's attention away from the conversation between Gold and Ms. Blanchard. Sydney Glass, the disgraced reporter whom Emma entrusted to assist her, had arrived with a decoration: a mug of colorful flowers to brighten up the otherwise dreary sheriff's station. Strange as it was, it was little more than a veiled excuse to report to Emma the results of his investigation into the background of Mayor Regina Mills.

Despite all his digging the reporter found nothing which could be used to call into question the evidence against Ms. Blanchard, such as whether or not Regina had purchased the knife used as a murder weapon or if she planted it into Mary Margaret's home. Sydney did promise to doggedly continue if for no other reason than to satisfy his own need for revenge against the mayor.

When Emma rejoined the previous conversation Ms. Blanchard had come to the decision to hire Mr. Gold as her defense attorney. His first action was to arrange an interview with the prosecutor, District Attorney Albert Spencer, which Mary Margaret found agreeable over Emma's objections as Mary Margaret contends she has nothing to hide.

 **~O~**

* * *

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

The arrival of the pirates to Pixie Hollow was as much of a shock as a sudden thunderclap. Frightened with unrivaled terror the little pixies were petrified beyond belief at the sight of these dirty, slobbering men in ratty clothing and bearing in their possession Queen Clarus herself. Those lucky few who were able to think of their own survival instantly flittered out of the way as the towering invaders ravaged their home.

The pirates, with utter disregard for the lives of the tiny humanoids that lived in this place, boldly strode towards the center of Pixie Hollow, cratering homes, trampling abandoned carts and crushing beneath their boots any fairy unlucky enough to be frozen by their own fright.

At the center of Pixie Hollow stood two glorious maple trees, one was The Pixie Dust Tree which was the lifeblood of Pixie Hollow. The other was The Home Tree, which housed a great many of the fairies which lived here. Underneath the Home Tree was the secret vault where the royal treasury was kept. Within the treasury was the gold and jewels which washed up on Never Land as well as the captured pirate booty of wrecked ships. Along with the valuables the treasury housed Pixie Hollow's most sacred relics and powerful magical items, including the fabled mirror which these buccaneers sought.

Hundreds of fairies assembled to repel the invaders, including many scouts armed with large nuts to be used in a barrage. The scouts were joined by fast flyers whose talents were turned against the intruders. The pirates dealt with the resistance using the blunderbusses they carried. Unlike the flint lock rifles and pistols these men often employed which fired a single ball the blunderbusses were loaded with shot, dozens of tiny balls which sprayed out from the weapons' uniquely flared out barrels.

With each pull of the trigger fairies fell from the skies in bunches. The shot shredded wings and fairy alike, traumatizing the queen and frightening off the otherwise stout defense of these interlopers. With the queen a captive and Prince Devon missing and presumed dead the ministers assumed the role of leadership and quickly concluded that the cost of fighting back was too steep. They ordered all fairies to retreat and take cover. They reasoned it was better to let these humans take what they wanted and let them leave than to risk thousands of lives in a futile attempt to repel them.

The strategy was a sound one, but flawed. Many fairies took cover in their apartments within the Home Tree only to find that the pirates surrounded it with the intent of cutting it down. Axes enchanted with dark magic struck the Home Tree and corrupted it, spreading death throughout the towering maple causing every branch, limb and twig to shrivel and twist with a macabre blight. Even the leaves turned dark before curling up and falling from their branches.

Quickly the tree was felled and hundreds of fairies scattered looking for other places to hide from these murderous barbarians. Beasts of burden were lashed to the stump which was all that remained of the once noble tree and through their collective effort it was ripped from the ground revealing at last the glimmering treasures the pirates intended to claim as their own. Including the magic mirror which had been their true prize all along.

 **~O~**

* * *

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

Young Regina, distraught by what her mother had done, sought out Daniel the stable boy that evening. She explained to him what had happened earlier in the day. That the king had asked for her hand in marriage and that her mother had accepted on Regina's behalf. Daniel suggested that they run away together, but Regina knew that Cora's magic would allow her to find them no matter where they hid. Cora had sacrificed a great deal for Regina to be in this position and she insisted that Regina's trajectory continue upward not downward.

While the two were in each other's arms the door to the stables opened. There stood a shocked little girl, the king's daughter Princess Snow White. Believing that Regina loved her father the king, Snow White was confused and frightened by what she saw. The girl ran, tears streaming from her eyes. Regina caught up with her to explain why she was in the arms of another man.

Young Regina had nothing against King Leopold. He was a good, kind and wonderful man, but Regina simply did not love him. She told the young girl that love is the most powerful magic in the world and that it could create happiness in anyone it touches and provided that person with a happily ever after. Veiled in these terms the girl easily understood and endorsed Regina's love for the boy in the stable.

Regina had one small caveat. She made Snow promise not to reveal this secret to Cora because the older woman would not understand. Snow White agreed and the two shared a hug and a created a close bond between them, two people who understood each other's needs and wants.

 **~O~**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Albert Spencer, the town's district attorney, was waiting in the jail house's interrogation room when Sheriff Emma Swan and Mary Margaret Blanchard arrived. Emma recognized DA Spencer from the trial involving Valerie Kensington. She remembered the tactics he used against Valerie and was certain he would bring them to bear upon Mary Margaret. Mr. Gold had prepared the young schoolteacher for that. What none of them expected was for Mayor Regina Mills to be in attendance. The sheriff hoped that it wouldn't knock Blanchard off balance during the questioning.

Not surprisingly the district attorney didn't immediately lay into Ms. Blanchard. Instead he slowly set the stage asking Blanchard about her "relationship" with David Nolan, confirming that she had had an altercation with Kathryn Nolan and that if Mrs. Nolan was not in the picture she and David could be together.

"You wanted Kathryn out of the way," he asked with his booming, baritone.

"No," Mary Margaret replied with complete conviction.

Unwilling to accept this answer, Spencer became combative forcing Ms. Blanchard to become defensive in her answers, made her angry with his verbal assault until she was forced to give the answer he wanted. When Mary Margaret finally admitted she would have preferred for Kathryn Nolan out of the picture she presented it as merely a desire or fantasy, but she spoke with such resentment towards Spencer and his badgering that it came off more as motive and confession of guilt.

Instantly Gold ended the interview, recognizing that Spencer was sure to twist her words even further. Ms. Blanchard had already done damage to her reputation by undermining the very tactic they were hoping to exploit.

 **~O~**

Vidia was having a better day than Claire, but only by comparison. She was now trusted to drive and on some days work on her own performing such menial exercises as assembling shelves, trimming hedges and other tasks she associated with tinkers. Though she felt that such labor was far beneath her status as a fast flyer she still somehow found this drudgery to be oddly fulfilling. She concluded that her satisfaction stemmed not from the actual exertions but that she was helping to support her queen, providing for the household and maintaining the status quo at least until the curse could be broken.

Today her morning schedule boasted only of such mundane efforts as running errands and paying bills on debts that never seemed to go away. She quickly understood why those debts never shrank, Claire was paying only on the interest. The interest, Vidia discovered, was the price paid to borrow money or make purchases on credit.

 _Only humans could make you pay money for borrowing money_ , she thought wryly.

Such musings were a welcome distraction after the sullen breakfast she shared with Claire, Tina and Penny. No one said a word between them. Everyone seemed to be absorbed in some tragic secret which they refused to share. Claire appeared traumatized, Tina seemed ashamed of something while Penny gave the impression that she wanted to extricate herself and be somewhere else, anywhere else, at that very moment. The only words spoken before leaving were Claire's instructions for today which were delivered in a strangely muted tone of voice.

It was during these errands that Vidia received a strange phone call. She did not recognize the originating phone number. "Hello?" she asked. "Who is this?"

The caller it turned out was the owner from the clothing store Modern Fashions. Vidia knew the place well. In the early days of winter Vidia, Tina and Claire had purchased new cold weather clothing to guard against the bitterness of the season in Maine. Furthermore, Dr. Archie Hopper's office was situated on the second floor of that same building. Vidia continued to attend regular sessions with the good doctor as he tried to help cure Vidia of her belief that she was a fairy from Never Land.

In her usual blunt way Vidia asked what the small business owner wanted. It seemed that the man remembered the Kensington family, and Vidia especially, because of what he called her "striking" features. In particular he recalled the sparkle of intelligence and defiant mischief in her eyes violet colored eyes.

She was unimpressed by her description having been accosted by more than her share of unwanted admirers both in Pixie Hollow and in Storybrooke. The owner then offered her a proposal which he described as being very profitable for both of them. That word "profitable" struck her with greater force today specifically because Vidia was paying ever inflating debts, debts which required the human currency upon which they put so much unnecessary value.

"Okay, what did you have in mind?" she asked.

"Come by the store and I will explain everything."


	38. Chapter 38

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **A Disney Fairies / Once Upon A Time Crossover**  
 **Season 1, Episode 18, Chapter 5**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

The owner of Modern Fashions, a middle aged man named Brisbain who had a touch of grey in his hair and was a bit stout in the middle, greeted Vidia when she arrived at the store. He introduced her to Manuel, a younger man with bleached tips crowning his dark hair and who wore disturbingly tight pants paired with a loose fitting vest over a white shirt. Manual carried himself with an effete manner and tone of voice which was accompanied by an energetic giddiness that was reminiscent of Gliss.

"Oh my, she is something, isn't she," Manuel commented as he circled her as if sizing her up. Vidia thought she was being reduced to a piece of meat. Though the man never laid a hand on her, and in fact kept his hands in front of his face making a box shape with his fingers, Vidia nonetheless felt as though she were being figuratively groped and fondled.

"Hey, stop that!" she yelled at the foppish man. She then turned and angrily addressed Brisbain. "If you think you can sell me off to some jerk you have another think coming."

"You misunderstand," the shop owner replied, his hands up in defense, "Manuel here works for an advertising agency as a talent scout, makeup artist and photographer."

"I already have a talent," Vidia retorted, "and it's not Scout. I'm a fast flyer. The best fast flyer in the history of…" Vidia was cut off by Brisbain's room filling laughter.

"Oh my no." Brisbain showed Vidia a copy of last year's summer catalog which he mailed out to every home in Storybrooke. Inside the pages were images of men, women and children all dressed in different kinds of attire and standing in unusual poses. "I want you to be the clothing model for this year's catalog."

 **~O~**

* * *

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

Regina feared the worst. She didn't want to marry King Leopold as she had no love for him. Though she had said otherwise, she decided that her only option was to run and informed Daniel of her intent to leave with him and get married. Cora's magic was powerful and it could easily offer her insight into Regina's whereabouts, but the young woman was desperate and she was making a desperate decision.

 **~O~**

* * *

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Sheriff Emma Swan sat on a roadside bench studying Henry's book of fairy tales. He maintained, quite adamantly, that Regina was setting up Mary Margaret because of their shared past in The Enchanted Forest. August Booth, the stranger who had motored into town several weeks earlier, approached her and inquired as to why she seemed so stressed. The case was giving her trouble and she was looking for anything that might prove the young schoolteacher's innocence.

Booth offered her some advice as a writer that he thought might be useful. Sometimes a story changes and when it does he takes a step back and reexamines the story and characters to make the story flow better. "When this case started it was a kidnapping. Then it turned into a murder but you are still investigating it as a kidnapping." He suggested that Emma start over again, this time examining the evidence as she would for a murder case.

Intrigued she began by going back to the stream where Ruby had found the box with the heart. She and Booth explored the edges of the stream until something caught their eye. It was a flat, triangular metal shard which Emma recognized as being from the corner of a shovel.

August's advice was quickly paying dividends and Emma was certain she knew to whom the shovel belonged.

 **~O~**

* * *

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

Snow White was in the great hall admiring some roses when Cora came upon her. The older woman advised the young girl to be careful of the flower's delicate nature. This startled the young girl who appeared nervous to her hostess. "Don't be frightened," Cora stated with a sweet smile and easy tone to her voice. Cora engaged the girl in conversation to put Snow at ease, complimenting her on how quickly she and Regina had become close friends.

"Can you tell me why Regina seems so distant from her mother lately?" Cora asked Snow with a lilt in her voice that spoke of sadness and loss. It struck cherubic Snow White and she immediately responded by informing Cora that Regina should not be forced to marry the king because she did not love him. When asked why the girl revealed that Regina loved someone else.

 **~O~**

That evening Regina met Daniel at the stables, fully prepared to run away with him and become his wife. Just as the two were about to make good on their escape the large doors to the stable opened and there stood Cora, filled with anger towards her child. Cora locked the stable doors behind her to ensure none could escape her wrath.

Regina, fearful of her mother's magic, tried to reason with her, but the elder woman refused to listen telling the younger woman that the only thing that endured was power. Regina rebuked Cora and her arguments, choosing instead Daniel over her mother's cold hearted decisions. Cora, however, was absolutely obstinate claiming to know what was best for her daughter.

Daniel, seeing the mother / daughter relationship coming apart at the seams, decided to step in and be a peacemaker. He took Cora aside to speak with her. "You love your daughter and want only what's best for her. I know you are only trying to protect Regina."

"I'm glad you understand," Cora stated, acting as if she held any sympathy for the young man. Instead she plunged her hand into his chest, calling upon her magic to extract his heart and crush it, killing the boy where he stood.

"MOTHER!" Regina screamed in agony. "What have you done?!"

"I've given you your happy ending," Cora replied with a calm temperament.

"What? But I loved him."

"Oh, Regina, you poor thing, love is weakness." She then declared that regardless of what Regina wanted she was to marry the king and become queen, completing the plan Cora had laid out for her years ago when the girl was first conceived.

 **~O~**

* * *

NORTH OF NEVER LAND

Standing on the deck of the brigantine, the captain had called a meeting of all hands. He explained the situation to them and put his idea to a vote, one that was resoundingly unanimous. It was agreed, the crew would not share their plunder with the man who had employed them, a hideous looking imp by the name of Rumpelstiltskin. The deal had been that the pirates would take everything in the treasury of the fairies in Pixie Hollow, in exchange they got to keep all the loot but Rumpelstiltskin had his own plans for the mirror. Now the pirate crew had elected to keep that for themselves, too.

Contrary to popular fiction pirate ships populated by mostly European crews were not floating tyrannies or despotic rule in miniature. In fact, it was quite the opposite. Most ships were peopled by individuals who had been seeking to escape an oppressive, authoritarian society in which only those with money or a title had any rights. Peasants, tradesmen, farmers and anyone else of "low birth" had no protections against the nonstop abuse from those in the higher echelons of society.

Piracy was a means to escape such crushing rule and practice freedom on the high seas, taking at gunpoint gold, jewelry and fineries from the aristocratic people who had made their lives so miserable. Crews which practiced democratic rule typically had a ship's charter or constitution. Every member vowed to obey it. The captain was elected by majority vote from the crew and could be removed from the office just as easily. Nearly all major decisions were made via majority vote and the captain had little autocratic powers save for three instances: when the ship was engaged in combat, when the ship was giving pursuit or being pursued, or when the crew was busy plundering. Under those very specific circumstances the captain's word was law.

Today, with the ship safely away from any pursuers the crew and captain met to decide what to do next and they chose to keep their spoils. All of it, including the wish granting mirror. First the pirates, following their most venal and base desires, sought to partake of all the food and spirits they could consume and wished for a feast to fill their bellies.

Afterwards, realizing that they would soon be marked men, the crew voted and elected for protection from other raiders or royal navies which would seek to capture them for acts of piracy against the crown. "Mirror of the Never Fairies grant us this our second wish, that no ship or nation shall be able to pursue, capture, imprison or enslave us ever again."

Sadly, what they did not know was that the mirror often granted wishes in unexpected ways. As soon as the fateful words were spoken a gale and swells battered the brigantine. The helpless crew tried desperately to weather the sudden storm but their efforts were fruitless and their vessel soon ran aground on a deserted island somewhere north of Never Land. When the storm lifted, which it did with equal suddenness, the captain found that the hull was badly ruptured and the keel was cracked in several places. Several of the crew had perished during the crash, including the only person capable of restoring the brigantine: the ship's carpenter.

To ensure that the neither the ship nor crew would ever be raided or captured the mirror had marooned them here, far from any shipping lanes where no one would ever find them. The captain, though, did not worry. He still had one wish left.

It was at this moment when their employer arrived. "My, my, my, but you've been naughty, haven't you," he seethed.

The pirate captain was not afraid of him. It would be so easy to wish this imp away forever. But then he remembered that there was only enough magic for one last request. Dispatch Rumpelstiltskin and they would be stranded forever. Save themselves from being marooned and The Dark One would easily find them and be at his mercy. "Why do you need this mirror, anyway," the captain asked of his employer. "With all the magic you have you can do as you please."

"Oh, I don't need the mirror for myself," Rumpel answered. "It's for someone else. And you're going to hold it for them until they arrive."

"I ain't waitin' for no one." The pirate unsheathed his cutlass and charged at the imp, but the cold steel caught only air as Rumpelstiltskin had vanished to another part of the deck.

A cold laugh and a wave of his fingers sealed the fate of the surviving mariners. Rumpelstiltskin placed upon the mirror a curse which prevented any human from using the last wish. Only one who came from the land which forged it would ever be able to tap into the powerful enchantment.

"I do hope you enjoy your gold," Rumpelstiltskin chortled before disappearing into a puff of purple smoke and leaving the stranded pirates to their dismal fate.


	39. Chapter 39

**Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke**  
 **A Disney Fairies / Once Upon A Time Crossover**  
 **Season 1, Episode 18, Chapter 6**

* * *

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

Young Regina was still in silent mourning. The brutal death of Daniel, the man she loved and wanted to spend the rest of her life with, still haunted her thoughts and plagued her with nightmares. How her mother knew of their midnight rendezvous she did not know. The only other person who was aware of their arrangement was the young princess Snow White and she promised to keep it a secret.

So it came as a soul rattling shudder when Snow admitted that she had indeed told Cora about Daniel, explaining how Regina loved Daniel so deeply. Snow's mother had died recently and the loss hit the child princess hard. The girl only revealed the secret because she was afraid that Regina would lose her mother, too. It was something Snow understood all too well and couldn't imagine it happening to such a nice young woman as Regina.

While Snow's reveal was purely innocent Regina's thoughts promptly turned in the opposite direction. The sense of betrayal was deep. This little whelp had ruined her life, her future and had condemned her into a marriage she despised. As they spoke Regina imagined how satisfying it would be wring the girl's neck with the string of pearls she was dressing Snow with, listening with sadistic pleasure as the little girl could not draw one more breath. Watching those perfect little cherubic cheeks drain of their pinkish hue to a pale color of death.

Oh how Regina liked nothing more than to pay this little witch back in kind.

Snow White continued to explain that she and Regina were going to be a great mother and daughter. They had gotten along so famously up till now that the little girl couldn't imagine a better pairing. Regina clasped the necklace of pearls and allowed them to hang around the girl's neck. Regina had not harmed the little princess; it was just a vision of revenge in her own mind. But the damage had been done and from this day forward the soon to be Queen Regina would live in a loveless marriage caring for the little girl who had taken her happily ever after away from her. Oh what a cruel irony.

Later Regina deduced the horrid truth of the situation. Cora had set the girl's horse into a frenzy knowing full well that Regina would rescue Snow White and bring the king to their castle. The manipulation was cruel and terrifying, yet despite knowing that Cora was responsible for these events Regina still singled out Snow White for her anger. Subconsciously Regina knew that she could do nothing to take revenge against Cora, whose magic made here all but impossible to defy. However, the little princess Snow White whose eagerness to please caused the death of Daniel was perfect fodder for Regina's anger and growing hatred.

From this day forward the innocent and kindly Regina died and the woman who would become known as the Evil Queen was born.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Standing in the mayor's tool shed, Sheriff Emma Swan was confronted with the absence of any meaningful evidence. Evidence she knew existed and had confirmed just the night before. Somehow that witch woman had done it again, outmaneuvered her just when Emma had Regina dead to rights.

The piece of shovel blade Emma had found near the stream led Sheriff Swan right to one person: Mayor Regina Mills. Yesterday evening with assistance from Henry, both Emma and August stole into Regina's tool shed and found a broken shovel which fit the shard perfectly. The evidence was damning to Regina and exculpatory for Mary Margaret.

Unfortunately, Emma could not simply remove the shovel. She had entered the tool shed without the property owner's consent. To that end she cooked up a reasonable story. The next morning Emma secured a search warrant, claiming that she had received and "anonymous" tip, and executed it immediately.

Regina was more than a little suspicious when Emma showed up at her door with the warrant demanding to be let into the tool shed, but she complied. Certain she had finally won Emma walked into the room and searched for the broken shovel.

It was missing. In its place was a new, undamaged shovel, recently purchased and never used.

 _How could she know?_

"Well, Sheriff Swan, it seems that your anonymous tip, whoever it was, was mistaken," Regina gloated. The mayor not only demanded that Sheriff Swan leave but even threatened to dismiss her from the office of Sheriff.

Aside from Henry, there was only one other person who was aware of the shovel's existence, August W. Booth. He had to be the informant and she accused him of collaboration upon leaving the mayor's residence. Booth claimed to be innocent, but Emma refused to believe him and ended their working relationship immediately.

As angry as Emma was at Booth for his disloyalty, she was more concerned for Mary Margaret's future. Without any clear evidence to the contrary Ms. Blanchard's defensive posture had become all but untenable.

 **~O~**

With her victory secured Mayor Mills made a trip to the Sheriff's office where she came to confront the prisoner: Mary Margaret Blanchard. Ms. Blanchard, having discovered that yet another avenue of her redemption had been cut off broke down and began to weep. Regina, however, showed no mercy.

"Regina, I don't know what I did to make you hate me so, but I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, but I don't deserve this," Ms. Blanchard spoke through teary eyed wails of desperation.

"Oh, I know you're innocent," Regina finally admitted, "but you do deserve this."

This revelation stunned Mary Margaret. Up till now she had only been suspicious that she was being railroaded. Now it was abundantly clear. Mayor Regina Mills had marshalled her considerable political power for the singular purpose of destroying this good natured school teacher.

Fear, confusion, anger but most of all despair, filled Mary Margaret Blanchard after her brief conversation with the mayor, a conversation which seemed more like a victory lap than anything else. Any hopes she had of salvaging her future seemed to die right in that cell. It would take a minor miracle to overcome all that Regina Mills had stacked against her.

Blanchard hoped that Emma could come up with one before her fate was sealed.

 **~O~**

Hartley was in his own state of confusion regarding the earlier phone call he had received from Claire. He was to meet her this evening so she could explain. He was worried, her voice sounded stressed. There was a palpable sense of anxiety and dread when he walked up to the front door. Strangely Claire did not answer the door right away when he pushed the doorbell to announce his presence. When she did the woman appeared to have been crying.

"My dear, are you all right?" he asked of her with deep concern for her state of mind. "What is the matter?"

"Please… please come in," Claire said, choking up a bit as she spoke.

Mrs. Kensington motioned for her lover to sit while she offered him some tea or coffee. He declined, preferring instead to get to the heart of the matter. "Please tell me what distresses you? Your call today sounded so strange."

Claire had great difficulty composing herself, taking a sip of the cool water she had brought out for him. "It's… it is not easy for me to say this, Hartley. I… when… there is a…" Claire was desperate for the right words. "I've been a… oh, Hartley, something terrible has happened," she finally managed to enunciate.

Hartley tried his best to coax the truth out of her, but Claire instead rambled on how she had made the mistake of thinking of her daughter as a little girl. "It's all my fault," she incriminated, "at least I think it's all my fault. I've been a terrible role model for my children."

"Claire, please, what are you talking about?"

"Tina is pregnant." Finally those words were out. From his viewpoint the admission seemed to be a like a weight being relieved from her chest, but the anxiety of a teenaged mother in the house replaced it immediately.

"Oh my. Uh… do you know who the father is?"

"The mailman. Clarence. She admitted as much."

"How dare he," Hartley said, sounding as indignant as he felt. "We should report that predator to his superiors. He should be flogged for taking advantage of an underage girl."

"No, this is my fault," Claire answered, holding her head as though it ached. "I put the idea in her head, I'm sure of it."

"You can't be certain, my love."

Claire laughed nervously as she answered him. "Oh yes I can. I promised to always conduct myself in the proper manner I wanted my girls to emulate. Then I broke that promise for my own, selfish reasons. Dammit I should have seen this coming."

"Dear, none of us can see into the future," Hartley said trying to console her.

"Oh no, I definitely should have seen this coming. The very moment we started sleeping together I should have put an end to it and focus on what was best for my girls and not me."

"You cannot blame yourself," Hartley replied. "Your own mental and emotional health is just as important."

"HA! Emotional health my ass. The only health I was worried about was between my legs. I am a poor excuse for a mother."

"You are a fine example of a single mother who has made many great sacrifices for her children," he told her. "What more can you possibly do?"

She sighed, took another drink of the cool water, and then answered him. "I have to make another sacrifice. I'm so sorry, Hartley, but how can I take the moral high ground while sleeping with you? It makes me a hypocrite. I've been acting like a hypocrite."

"Are you suggesting…?"

"No I'm not suggesting. I'm saying it outright. We have to stop seeing each other."

Hartley was beside himself. His suspicions had been correct; she was breaking up with him. The reason while startling, was not unlike her. Claire was devoted to her daughters and put their happiness ahead of her own. Still, he hoped to salvage their relationship. He adored dearly, watched as another man captured her heart and built a loving family as he was forced to worship her from afar for years. Then when she became a widow, Hartley kept a discreet distance so she could recover from the loss. It was a painstakingly long time.

Yes, part of the reason why he argued for them to continue was for his own selfish reasons. Yet he also recognized that Claire was most happy when they were dating. At least as happy as when she was married to her now deceased husband, a good man in every respect. The stresses of raising two children on her own had been wearing on her. She never once looked it but the psychological scars were there, buried under her breathtaking beauty and irresistible smile.

She needed someone in her life to help provide that happiness. Those good feelings which were meant to balance the onslaught of frightening anxieties that seemed to hover over her with a perpetual threat of annihilation. Annihilation of home, family and future. How could he wish something so horrible on someone so lovely, so deserving of a better life?

Winter did his best to convince her otherwise. "Is it necessary for such drastic action?" he asked her, pleading his case. "If it's impropriety you're worried about we could simply stop having sex."

"But we won't," she answered him. "We tried not having sex in my house and look what happened?"

"Just because we couldn't before doesn't mean we can't now."

"Hartley, I love you. I truly do, and that's why I have to end this now." Claire wanted to sleep with him. She enjoyed having that warmth of both body and soul next to hers every night and each morning. It made her feel good. Too good. She wouldn't be able to give it up knowing Hartley was just a phone call away. "No more discussion. This ends now."

Hartley Winter understood when she would no longer entertain his counterarguments. Choked with regret he bid his goodbyes, never once showing a single drop of anger or resentment towards her. Winter had no reason to burn bridges. "Perhaps it was the wrong time," he said with a weak but sincere smile. "If you ever need anything at all…"

Claire said nothing. Her posture, her facial expression, her body language all spoke of a deep pain. She didn't want to do this, but she needed to do this. It was the only way Claire could maintain her moral authority as a mother. Winter couldn't let it end this way, he had to discern a means to solve this conundrum to everyone's satisfaction.

* * *

 **~O~**

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

"What do you mean you failed?" Queen Regina asked. Mr. Smee, the man who had offered to retrieve the Enchanted Mirror of Incanta had just informed her that he was unable to complete his task. It was hard for him to deliver the bad news. His reputation as a procurer of rare and hard to find items was on the line.

The short, rotund first mate explained that the ship sent to retrieve the miraculous artifact was lost at sea taking all hands with her, expect one. A single deck hand survived long enough to tell a wild eyed story to his rescuers how hundreds of fairies conjured up a terrible storm, a mighty gale, and violent seas in an effort to reclaim the lost treasure. Unfortunately, the attempts to recover the mirror only caused the ship to tear apart and sink, taking the powerful relic with it.

Queen Regina stared at him with intense disbelief. "How could simple fairies accomplish such a feat?"

"These Never Fairies are nothing like the creatures which inhabit our lands, Your Majesty," he told her. "You see, they command the very forces of nature itself: water, wind, sunlight, storms and even the plants and animals of the forest. Nothing is beyond their ability to manipulate."

Heartbroken, Regina asked one final question. "Who is this queen so ruthless that she would send an entire crew to the bottom of the seas?"

The first mate swallowed hard, as if reluctant to even speak the name. "Clarion, Your Majesty. Queen Clarion of the Never Fairies."

 **~O~**

Regina was losing hope that she could ever be reunited with Daniel, the stable boy she had loved so much. The man she had wanted to marry before her mother ripped out his heart and murdered him. She had become increasingly desperate to find some means of reviving him, of undoing his death. Any possible means by magic she investigated, any person promising results she consulted. All were charlatans.

All except for this Mr. Smee. The Enchanted Mirror of Incanta was to be her saving grace. Even her own magic mirror confirmed its status as a relic possibly capable of undoing Cora's magic. Now she learned that the attempt to secure it had failed and it was lost forever. She was becoming desperate, losing hope that she could ever revive her beloved stable boy.

And that was just how Rumpelstiltskin wanted it. After Smee and Queen Regina parted ways, the portly man retreated to his ship, on the way he waved his fingers in the air and was promptly surrounded by a puff of purple smoke. When it cleared there stood Rumpelstiltskin, the imp known as The Dark One. Smee had never visited Regina, nor had he made any attempt to retrieve the mirror.

Frustrated by her mother's callous use of dark magic Regina discovered the source of Cora's powers and summoned Rumpelstiltskin, the creature who schooled Cora. He offered to teach her how to command the same dark magic so Regina could defend herself from her mother's tyrannical control. However, after realizing how black she had to make her own heart to secure such power Regina balked, instead preferring to focus on the restoration of Daniel.

Rumpel, on the other hand, did not like this one bit and tried to persuade the young woman to continue her training in the dark arts, but it was to no avail. She was dedicated to the man she was desperate to marry. To that end Rumpelstiltskin created this fake scenario to try and destroy all hope and force the woman to give in to the hate and anger which were at the very core of Dark Magic.

However, before Regina could continue her training she had to make the decision on her own, she could not be forced into it. But that didn't mean Rumpelstiltskin couldn't nudge her in the direction a little. Before leaving he gauged his student's will to continue this search to restore her dead lover. It was at the breaking point. This was good. One more final gambit was all that was needed to push her over the edge.

And Rumpelstiltskin knew just the person to help him accomplish that feat. A man schooled in something known as natural philosophy in a place known as The Land Without Color.

* * *

 **~O~**

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

"There's still time," Mr. Gold told Emma Swan at the Sheriff's Office. "I can still work a little magic."

Sheriff Swan was more than just frustrated. She was angry. Mayor Regina Mills had once more taken victory away from her. The woman had no conscience. She used her political power to threaten anyone in town and bent them to her will. But Emma wasn't going to give up just yet. Her son living in that woman's house and her friend forced to reside behind bars were both relying on her to find a way to win.

But how when the entire town could be turned against her on a whim?

Well, not the entire town. There was one person in Storybrooke who was immune to the mayor's political tricks but Emma couldn't trust him. Mr. Gold, the owner of the local pawn shop, was always playing a longer game and used anyone in a desperate situation to his advantage. But he was also the only one capable of outclassing Regina at her own game. He had done it once before, helping Emma to win the election for Sheriff, but later discovered it was entirely for his own benefit. Now here he was offering to help again, clearly to his own ends.

That man absolutely had not a shred of altruism in his bones.

Furious at the corner she had been backed into Emma grabbed the first thing within arm's reach, the small arrangement of flowers Sydney had brought, and flung it mightily against the wall where it shattered into a dozen pieces.

"What is this?" Littered among the flowers on the floor Emma spotted something very much out of place. She reached down, picked it up and examined it. It was a bug, a listening device hidden within the vase. This was how Regina always seemed to be one step ahead of her. Sydney Glass the reporter had brought this to the sheriff's office to add color to the otherwise dull environment. That meant that her so called co-conspirator was actually working for Regina.

And August W. Booth was innocent.

 **~O~**

It wasn't a conversation she was supposed to overhear, but it was impossible to avoid. Vidia had arrived home just after Hartley Winter. She parked in the driveway and entered through the backdoor going directly into the kitchen. Her back was beet red and in searing pain. Today was her last visit to the tattoo parlor. It marked the final session to remove the inking done to her back while under the power of The Dark Curse.

She tried not to focus on the pain and latched onto the other voices in the house. Through the swinging door she heard her mother and Mr. Winter arguing. What she heard floored her.

Tina was pregnant, Clarence was the father and worst of all Claire was breaking up with Hartley Winter.

At first Vidia couldn't believe that Tinker Bell, Tina in this world, could possibly be with child. Tink was a fairy and fairies couldn't have children. Then she remembered that in Storybrooke they were all human and humans could definitely bare offspring. When the argument ended and Winter left the house, Vidia slipped quietly into the living room. At first she didn't want to let on that she knew, but Claire's sobbing made that all but impractical to not ask what was wrong.

After being told what she already knew Vidia listened as her mother wept over how much money this was going to cost them. Prenatal care (whatever that was), doctor visits, vitamins, birthing classes, hospital charges for the delivery room, baby food, diapers, inoculations and on and on and on. Claire let it slip just how truly bad their financial situation was and even suggested that if worse came to worse that they should gather what they wanted to keep and prepare to move out of the house and into a smaller apartment.

Vidia couldn't possibly imagine living in any space smaller than this. But that was beside the point; her queen was in greater trouble than ever. She needed to do something to help the situation.

At her first opportunity Vidia contacted the owner of Modern Fashions. She had earlier decided to turn down his offer to be a catalog model, but it paid well and if sales improved he would bring her back for more work. This revelation, however, forced Vidia to change her mind. "Hello, Mr. Brisbaine? I'll take the job. When do you want me there?"

 **~O~**

"August," Emma called out. "August wait."

"Here to accuse me again?"

"No, I want to apologize," Emma told him.

August W. Booth had just exited Granny's Diner and was walking to his motorcycle when Emma ran up the parking lot to speak to him. He had no desire to see her again. August had done everything to help her find the clues to crack this case and when things went wrong she accused him of collusion.

"Apologize?"

Emma explained what she discovered in her office. Sydney Glass had planted a bug in the vase of flowers. He was the one who was informing Regina. Both of them had been played for fools. August could tell she was being truthful, and while it hurt to have been accused he was just as indignant to discover the truth behind what happened.

As they spoke Emma tried to convey just how remorseful she truly was. Before she could finish the two heard an earsplitting scream come from behind the diner. Emma recognized it immediately as Ruby, the young waitress who worked with her grandmother in the restaurant. Ruby was in a deep state of shock as she stood over the body of a woman. A woman whom Emma identified as David's wife: Kathryn Nolan. To everyone's surprise Kathryn very much alive.

* * *

 **This wraps up Episode 18. Hopefully the next chapter will be available soon.**


End file.
